Well, that only took a couple weeks..

Saint Paul Mayor Coleman and city attorney John Choi announced today that the city has graciously decided not to prosecute journalists arrested while covering the Republican National Convention at the beginning of September.

Those arrested included a KARE-11 photographer whose shoulder-mounted video camera was perhaps mistaken for a lethal weapon.  I suppose those network television cameras with the rather conspicuous multicolored NBC peacock emblazoned on the side look a lot like FIM-92 "Stinger" missile launchers to some police officers.

The Society of Professional Journalists has applauded Mayor Coleman's decision to drop those misdemeanor charges against journalists.  They and others, including the citizens of Saint Paul, should be asking why it took the Mayor nearly three weeks to make the right move on such an obvious First Amendment issue.