Case 12CF000020 still not online at Circuit Clerk website

It seems to me that a high-profile case involving a McHenry County Sheriff's Department (Greg Pyle) could make it through the red tape at the courthouse and be entered into the database of the McHenry County Circuit Clerk on a Monday. But a search tonight for Pyle's name or the Case Number comes up empty.

Cal Skinner even already had a copy of the warrant filed today in Pyle's arrest. Man, oh man; what connections does Cal have? Good going, Cal.

So, let's check the time-line. Pyle was busted Friday night for crimes that occurred between September 11, 2006, and September 10, 2010. On McHenry County Blog you can read eight of the counts of Predatory Criminal Sexual Assault of a Child. (What are the other two counts?) A warrant was issued by Judge Mark R. Gerhardt (this will make his first year as a judge memorable) with a $200,000 bond, and everybody in this end of the state started looking for Pyle.

Well, not everybody, because the McHenry County Sheriff's Department failed to notify the public through its magnificent NIXLE system. It's my understanding that police-band radio broadcasts identified Pyle as "heavily armed", as he would have been in possession, perhaps, of all of his SWAT Team weapons. Well, at least he didn't go off the deep end and decide to take a bunch of his critics with him, before he surrendered Saturday night.

His bond form should reveal whether he has to turn in his weapons and FOID card and also whether there is an Order of Protection against him.

Will Mrs. Pyle quickly file for divorce?

Don't you have to wonder, though, how the Complaint (see McHenry County Blog) could be specific enough with the dates of the offenses? A two-year timespan? That's a four-year time period, starting over five years ago. Were the crimes known before last Friday?

Will that end up being shown as a set-up for failure by the prosecution? The first defense argument will probably be that the charges are too vague (as to time), to broad (time-wise). How was it determined that ten offenses took place in the four-year timespan? And how was it known that was the time period? That's a lot to accept. But accept it, the judge did.

Pyle must have had his AmEx Gold Card with him, so that $20,000 could be added to his credit card balance. What do you suppose the monthly payment is on that? And the interest rate?

Hey, isn't there a Sheriff's Department Merit Commission meeting this week? January 11th? Nah, it was previously canceled, like so many others. Maybe there were a little hasty this time in canceling it? Let's keep a sharp eye on the Calendar of Meetings on the McHenry County Government website, found at co.mchenry.il.us

If anyone spots scheduling of a Special Meeting of the Sheriff's Dept. Merit Commission before its next regularly-scheduled meeting on February 8th, please let me know.

Has anyone seen Sheriff Nygren yet? Isn't something like Pyle's capers important enough for Keith to leave Minocqua and get back here to Woodstock?

There was a little (sick) humor in this morning's Northwest Herald article, when the reporter wrote "McHenry County Undersheriff Andrew Zinke, who typically speaks as the Sheriff's Office spokesman ..."  Ha-ha. He is? He does? Since when? Don't they pay the big bucks to Aimee' Knop to be the Public Information Officer? Is the NWH just doing its part to set up Zinke as the next sheriff?

Zinke does not "typically speak" as the mouthpiece for the Sheriff's Department. The Sheriff hogs the spotlight, when he is in town. The problem is that Nygren is up in Minocqua, Wisc. If you don't believe it, just dial his number. You can speak directly with Mrs. Nygren, too, when she answers the phone. Say "Hi" from Woodstock. Remind Keith where Woodstock is. Now, be nice to Mrs. Nygren, everybody.

If Pyle is convicted, he'll have to register as a sex offender. Won't he lose his FOID card? And won't that eliminate him from work in law enforcement? Are there any children in the household when he is crashing now? What about that K-9? Is it trained to nail predators?

Note to the State's Attorney's Office: No deals. NO deals. Go for the max on this one. The taxpayers will gladly support your expenditures to prosecute this one.