There are many reasons why John Timoney should be fired. He has trampled civil rights, from the 2003 Free Trade Area of the Americas protests to the soon-to-be-placed video cameras throughout downtown. He accepted a free Lexus SUV from a local auto dealer and then lied about it. And, according to the police union, he allowed subordinates to manipulate crime statistics to make it appear he’s doing a good job.

There’s also this: City cops hate him. On September 4, 520 of 650 police union members cast no-confidence votes against the chief.

All of that has been publicized. But until now, no one has talked about perhaps his greatest sin. He’s the city’s best-paid employee - with a compensation package worth more than

$214,000 per year - but he’s not around much. During four years and nine months in office, Timoney has been out of town for at least 138 days - not counting vacation. During his 30 jaunts to places like Belfast and Los Angeles, he has stayed in the Wilshire Grand and the Mandarin Oriental. Cost to taxpayers: more than $28,000.

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