It’s a shame that those responsible for derogatory, potentially libelous, postcards mailed days before the last Lawrence City Commission election apparently will get off scot-free.

U.S. Postal Service officials announced last week that they have been unable to determine who sent one postcard that accused City Commissioner David Schauner of domestic abuse. The Postal Service investigated the matter because the party who mailed the postcards violated postal regulations by not paying applicable fees of about $640.

Although a Lawrence printer reported that Mike Capra, a local plumber, had sought to have her company print postcards similar to the ones investigated, postal inspectors apparently couldn’t make that link. After a months-long investigation the Postal Service said the investigation essentially is closed, unless someone comes forward with new information.

Earlier this month, Capra did acknowledge his role in legally mailing another anti-Schauner postcard in the closing days of the campaign. That information was included in a campaign finance filing for the group cited on the postcard, a group called Teachers for a Better Lawrence, although it had no apparent connection to the education community. The report showed that Capra had contributed $1,000 to the campaign. Donors who supposedly gave another $110 to the campaign weren’t listed because all of their contributions were under $50.

After his contribution to the Teachers for a Better Lawrence was revealed, Capra defended his actions by saying, “It was my money and at least I stepped up to the plate.” On the contrary, most people would think someone who “steps up to the plate” would be willing to identify himself in a timely fashion with the opinions he is expressing rather than hiding behind a group with a misleading, made-up name. The postcards sent just before the election were the work of a sniper hiding in the shadows, not someone willing to step up and stand by his/her opinion.

Unfortunately none of the funding information on the postcard was available to voters before the April election, when it would have been useful, because campaign finance reports didn’t have to be filed until January. Although it would be difficult to require reporting for mailings made so late in a campaign, Kansas legislators are considering measures to tighten the campaign reporting laws. The reforms would include requirements that reports be filed in a more timely fashion and that groups sponsoring “issue” advertising be identified.

Schauner has said he won’t pursue any legal action related to the postcards. He won re-election despite the postcards, and pursuing the case would be a time-consuming and expensive exercise. But as he said earlier this month, this case is “a poster child for what is wrong with the system.” No campaign law probably can end all of the abuses, but lawmakers owe it to Kansans to try to shine a light on other people who are “stepping up to the plate” in an effort to influence political campaigns in the state.