We agree with Auburn City Manager Mark Palesh that an outside agency should investigate the city's handling of thefts at the public works department, and we urge our state representatives to use whatever clout they have to make sure such a probe takes place.

The case of missing city property and the subsequent amnesty and anonymity offered to city workers who returned stolen or borrowed items caused more than a little uproar since it became public knowledge, and city leaders are now faced with suspicious taxpayers wondering if the whole mess was handled properly.

City councilors Matthew Smith and William Graney have also come out in favor of a third-party investigation, and that seems to be the only way the issue can be closed for good.

Though he still insists that the investigation into the thefts and the offer of amnesty for people who returned items was handled well, Palesh this week wrote a letter to the state Commission of Investigation, seeking an expedited review of the entire matter.

Palesh said that an investigation will not only dispel the “unfounded allegations” about how things were handled, but might also offer some useful feedback about how the police department might have handled its initial investigation differently.

With so many city officials having been aware of problems at the DPW and so little information about the investigation made public, there needs to be a clear explanation of what happened and why.

If anything took place that wasn't above board, the public deserves to know. And if the city followed perfectly legal and ethical guidelines in its investigation, it's just as important to have that aired, as well.

Even if the only thing to come out of a report are some good suggestions about how the city might handle a similar situation in the future, it will have been a beneficial exercise.