Mike Wooten, from the "Troopergate" scandal, is about to be reassigned for his own protection.

The state trooper behind the abuse-of-power investigations of Gov. Sarah Palin is getting a reassignment this Sunday following threatening telephone calls to his employer.

Mike Wooten has been on desk duty for his own protection in recent weeks after troopers began receiving hostile calls from Alaskans and people outside the state, according to public safety union officials.

Callers said things like "If I ever see Trooper Wooten on the road, I'm not going to let him stop me," according to union director John Cyr.

"It was clear there was a lot of feeling and misdirected feeling among the public," Cyr said Friday of the phone calls received by troopers. "The department came to us. There were worries about Mike's safety. We agreed -- and Mike agreed -- to do paperwork until after the election."

Cyr said Wooten's recent duties included evidence logging and filling out reports. His new role begins Sunday.

Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters said Wooten will be reassigned from the Palmer post to the judicial services bureau in Anchorage. The new job could include overseeing prisoner transports, issuing warrants and assisting in fugitive transfers, Peters said.

I heard Jon Cyr on C.C.'s radio show going into more detail about the kinds of threats that the Office of Public Safety have been receiving.

They are coming from both inside Alaska as well as outside Alaska, and they have run the gamut from overt threat toward Mike Wooten to feelings of fear if they ever encountered Trooper Wooten.

John Cyr was quick to make the point that there has NEVER been a complaint filed against Mike Wooten that did not originate from the Palin family. If not for Sarah Palin and her tribe, Mike Wooten would just be another anonymous trooper facing danger on a daily basis to keep our state safe from the bad guys. She made him infamous, and put his life in danger.

I posted about this news story when it first broke last Saturday. It is worth noting that our local news outlets seem to have been very slow in discovering or picking up this story. The article I stumbled across came from ABC News, a news agency outside of our state.

There seems a hesitance from our own news outlets to publish articles which show Sarah Palin, or her family, in a harsh light. This is very frustrating for those of us desperately trying to learn the truth about Alaska's first family.

Considering what we have learned from the numerous interviews Palin has given to the national media, and what other reporters from outside news agencies have dug up, we have every right to be very concerned and to expect our local newspapers and television stations to start doing their damn jobs.

After all we cannot expect the bloggers to do all of the work now can we?

Update: I changed the picture, apparently the one I originally used was of an actor who just happens to look somewhat like Wooten. You ever have one of those days?