For the past four months, Fire Chief Bonnie Bleskachek has been sitting at home drawing her full-time paycheck, while someone somewhere in the bowels of City Hall is investigating charges of harassment and sexual discrimination against her. I say someone somewhere because nobody anywhere in city government seems to know anything about who’s doing what or, more important, when.

What we know is that three women firefighters have alleged that Bleskachek made romantic advances toward them and then retaliated against them when she was rebuffed. We know that because the circumstances surrounding these incidents have all been publicized in the media. All three women have apparently been available for interviews.

What nobody seems to know is why it’s taken more than four months for the city to complete its internal investigation of the case.

The city’s last big investigation, when Police Chief William McManus suspended three officers over their handling of the Duy Ngo case, was announced February 27, 2004, and the whole thing was wrapped up less than a month later, on March 19. The difference? That investigation was conducted by the Bloomington city attorney.

Maybe the Bleskachek case is more complicated; maybe the civil suit against Bleskachek limits what city investigators can do. Whatever the case, Minneapolis taxpayers are footing the bill for a full-time fire chief who’s not doing her job and at least deserve an explanation as to why she’s not back on the job yet.