State Senator Bob Mellow, often embroiled in some controversy or another, dodged an ethics bullet when a panel dismissed a complaint lodged against him.

The complaint involves Mellow’s position on Blue Cross’s Board of Directors. This is a reasonable complaint, since the insurance industry lobbies legislators and Mellow, getting a stipend as a board member, easily, at the least, gives the appearance of a conflict of interest.

The dismissal came because the complaint didn’t specify what part of the ethics code was being violated. This is a technicality. But the filer, Eric Epstein of RockTheCapital.org, will fix the errors and add a few new fun complaints, so the ante will be upped. It’ll be interesting to see if more technicalities will be around to exploit next time.

The panel should have addressed the issue, and the spirit of the complaint, rather than hiding behind paperwork. As a result, Mellow, if innocent, would’ve been cleared. Now, the question still remains.