That Port Orchard Mayor Lary Coppola made a very serious mistake should be painfully obvious to everyone at this point — including Coppola himself.

His arrest early Sunday morning for driving under the influence is both an embarrassment to the city he was elected to serve and a stain on his personal reputation.

Voters may well choose to decide the incident reflects badly on his judgment when — and if — he chooses to run for a second term next year.

That is their privilege.

At the same time, we used the word “mistake” advisedly, because ultimately that’s what it was. And even good people sometimes make mistakes.

The question is how they respond to it.

Despite our righteous indignation over his actions, it’s also fair to point out this was Coppolla’s first offense,

One should also remember that he was cooperative with the authorities, took full responsibility and didn’t hurt anyone.

None of which excuses what Coppolla did, but since these are the sort of mitigating circumstances a judge considers when passing sentence, it seems reasonable to factor them into our own response.

Lastly, despite the predictable allegations that Coppolla was treated differently than you or I might be in a similar situation, the facts show that both the Port Orchard police and Washington State Patrol were completely even-handed and professional, and the mayor received no special favors.

So where does that leave us?

As ungratifying an option as it might be in the heat of the moment, the only thing we can do now is wait for the legal machinery to grind its way to a conclusion.

In the meantime, it’s clear the mayor has a lot of work to do in terms of rehabilitating his tarnished public image.

Only time will tell whether he’ll be able to pull it off.