Jury trial starts three years later

How long does it take to get to trial in McHenry County? Sometimes, almost three years. Sometimes, longer.

Three cases (four charges) are finally going to get tried this week. The charges go back to April 2008 and February 2009.

A Crystal Lake woman has had problems with a neighbor for several years. The neighbor files Disorderly Conduct charges. The Crystal Lake P.D. accepts them. On four of them (before today's cases) the complainant never showed up in court, and the charges were dropped.

This time? The complainants (well, one of them) are showing up. The charges started out as violations of the City's ordinances. Somewhere along the way the State's Attorney's Office took over.

In an initial court appearance today at 10:00AM, Judge Weech asked the question I have been asking: "Why are these three cases being tried together?"

Noting that the dates of the incidents were all on separate days, Judge Weech said the cases could not be tried together. He said they were all separate incidents, which they are. He said they were "totally separate." Judge Weech was ready to get started and said they'd try the oldest case first.

I couldn't hear the answer from the Assistant State's Attorney, but it didn't seem to be a strong response. I was waiting to hear the defendant's attorney jump in on the judge's side, but he remained silent. Oh, no... does silence mean agreement with the prosecutor? That's how it seemed to me.

And then the defendant's attorney indicated that he wanted them tried together.

That's a strategy I don't understand. Maybe if I had gone to law school, I'd understand it. My concern is that by lumping them all together, the jury might just decide that the defendant has to be guilty of something, or else she wouldn't be there in the first place. So they might find her Not Guilty on three of the charges, but stick her with a Guilty verdict on the fourth.

It's not supposed to work out that way. The jury is to listen to all the evidence and make their decisions based on the facts. So far, I'm not sure that the jury understands that they are going to hear about four charges and three separate dates.

Opening arguments are scheduled for 10:30AM Tuesday. Judge Weech is hoping that the jury will begin deliberations Wednesday afternoon and have a verdict Wednesday night. Otherwise, the trial will continue into Thursday.