Remember the woman in Crystal Lake who was accused of being such a nasty neighbor that multiple charges of Disorderly Conduct were filed against her on several occasions. I mean, you'd have thought she was Al Capone's moll or something.
It started back in 2006, when the first of the first four cases was filed by angry neighbors. Matters dragged on for ages with continuances, and finally the first four cases were dismissed, when trial dates came and prosecution witnesses didn't show up.
Then a new round started in 2008, and more complaints were filed. Months passed with continuance and continuance. Then came trial day in March 2011. As I recall, she was found not guilty on two charges, got a directed verdict of not guilty on a third, and was found guilty by the jury on a fourth charge. But she quickly learned that a juror had communicated with a witness during the trial!!!
I urged her to talk to her attorney about a mistrial. She did and then changed public defenders and filed for a new trial.
I never thought the State would prosecute again, but it did. Several months ago I believed that the State didn't have a chance in this case because, in the previous jury trial, the prosecution had presented its evidence and the defense did not take the stand. Thus, the defense heard all the prosecution's evidence, and the prosecution heard nothing from the defense.
Her new special public defender was Bill Bligh. Her new trial went forward yesterday, even though one of the main prosecution witnesses was again a no-show. I was told that Judge Weech refused a request by the prosecution for yet another continuance. A bench trial was held.
After the prosecution testified, then the defendant took the stand in her own defense. Judge Weech found her Not Guilty.
How many court dates were there from start to finish? Ready? Sitting down? (Court dates for the 2006 and 2007 cases are not counted.)
In 2008: 11
In 2009: 15
In 2010: 13
In 2011: 19
In 2012: 9
Grand total: 67
You never know who is interested…
3 months ago
6 comments:
This woman got to pick her public defender? Something is definitely amiss here.
Also, doesn't this case point out a fault with your reasoning. Your reasoning being that all of these defendants should be rushed to trial ... and the result, not guilty.
Why in the world of sports do you not blame the state's attorney for bringing the lame case? How is it possible that you missed that obvious problem? Does the state's attorney's office have too many attorneys? Are they improperly supervised? Is there no penalty for dragging out a case this long and losing?
You can choose from the above list of questions for your next rant.
67 is not a record.
No, she didn't pick her public defender.
No, 67 is just one example of waste in the court process.
Ray, I do blame the state's attorney for bringing the "same lame case". It was no good the first time around, even though they got a guilty verdict from the jury on one charge. You throw enough mud on the wall; some will stick. Is that how McHenry County juries decide?
And then to waste money re-trying this case? Oh, well; it's just government money. So why not?
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