Gary Gauger lawauit against McHenry County and some of the deputies involved in his case is scheduled to start this Monday, August 10, 2009, at 10:00AM in Room 210, but you'd never know it from the press coverage (none) in the Northwest Herald, the Daily Herald or the Chicago Tribune.
The last mention in the two Heralds was in December and in the Chicago Tribune in November. Hello? Isn't anyone (at the papers) paying attention?
Why are the local papers so quiet about it? Their reporters should be all over this case. Of course, they wouldn't want to prejudice a potential juror, would they?
Questionable investigation tactics led to a questionable "confession", to a trial, to conviction, to sentencing, to a stay on death row ...
AND, after all that, Gauger was released from prison and the two killers were caught and are in prison.
Gauger's case names the following defendants:
Beverly Hendle,
Eugene Lowery (currently, Undersheriff of the McHenry County Sheriff's Department),
Christopher Pandre, in their individual and official capacities,
the Office of the McHenry County Sheriff (which was occupied by Sheriff Nygren's predecessor at the time of the arrest and trial), and
the County of McHenry.
Gauger seeks to recover damages for malicious prosecution and wrongful convition, death sentences and imprisonment.
Gauger's story can be read in his book, In Spite of the System, which is available at Read Between the Lynes bookstore on the Woodstock Square. Pick up your copy this week-end. Call 815.206.5967 and they will hold a copy for you.
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3 comments:
Eugene Lowery is now the Under Sheriff? I thought he would have lost his job for what he did. I need to pay more attention to what's going on. Keep us posted on this. I read Gauger's book and saw the special on the Discovery channel, the whole thing is sickening. And now this Lowery is one of the top cops? What is going on around here?
The county has already spent over one million dollars of taxpayer money to defend the sheriff and his boys in the Gauger case.The trial hasn't even started yet. What will the total cost be to the taxpayers. No matter the case outcome the taxpayer has already lost. Where is the local newspaper stories on this case. The current undersheriff put an innocent man on death row for 3 years. Nice police work. Then the sheriff promotes him all the way thru the ranks to undersheriff. Must be all his qualifications, right QWA and DA. There has also been about 18 federal lawsuits against the SO just since 2004, and that's only the federal cases. How much has been spent on legal fees and awards during this "highly qualified" sheriff's tenure. Any half truths in there QWA, DA.
Gene Lowery, Beverly Hendle and Chris Pandreare are painting a sob story for themselves, however, they should not forget the fact that because they failed to investigate the case properly and were so zealous about "getting their man" that they ruined many years of a man's life.
They were supposed to protect people, but instead, they chose to imprison an innocent citizen. In my opinion, they should be brought to justice for their shameful crimes. We need honest officers, not men who want to show off their "scorecards" for # of prosecutions made.
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