Oran's new chief

Steve Shoemaker didn't exactly rescue Oran from lawlessness. But the town's new police chief did take over an office last week that hadn't been occupied for two months.

Oran had depended on patrols by the Scott County Sheriff's Department since former chief Marc Tragesser and both full-time employees resigned from the police force in November. Tragesser's brief tenure as chief had been tumultuous, with one faction in town complaining that his law enforcement practices were overzealous and another faction welcoming his approach. Strains developed in the community morale.

Tragesser, a Charleston, Mo., native, eventually took a job as a deputy with the Mississippi County Sheriff's Department.

Shoemaker is an Oran native who worked in law enforcement with the U.S. Air Force, the Chaffee Police Department and the Scott County Sheriff's Department before retiring in November. The 56-year-old Shoemaker claims to know everyone who lives in the small community and appears to have been welcomed.

If his presence helps restore a much needed sense of normality in Oran, it will be a change in the right direction.