Sheriff Joe was in town

Maricopa County's Sheriff Joe Arpaio was in town (well, sort of ... Kendall County) today to draw a crowd to the Kendall County GOP summer picnic. So I hopped on the motorcycle and headed south to Yorkville and the Kendall County Fairgrounds.

Joe's a pleasant man with a good sense of humor. In his hour-long talk he referred to the people to whom he is accountable, and it was clear that he meant it. Quite refreshing, I must say.

As I arrived, there was a large group of protesters near the entrance road to the Fairgrounds. I rode by and pulled on into the parking area. After settling the bike on the grass parking lot, a golf cart passed, and Joe was aboard. He had been out with the protesters!

I didn't get any sense that Joe picks on Mexican illegals. I think his deputies arrest all illegals. And he doesn't confine his raids on employers to the unincorporated parts of Maricopa County. He goes to all parts of Maricopa County, including the cities and towns because they are in his County.

Sheriff Joe signing a pair of famous pink shorts

He made some of the familiar comments about chain gangs and a women's chain gang, and about controlling the TV viewing menu and serving meals to inmates that cost the jail $0.50/day. Not $0.50/meal; that's $0.50 per day. And he's planning to start charging the inmates for those meals.

He took a poke at President Obama and the national plan of only going after illegal aliens who commit serious crimes. Sheriff Joe's opinion is that, as soon as a person crosses the border and enters the U.S. illegally, he is a criminal!

He gets sued every once in a while, he said. And every time he gets sued, his numbers in the polls go up!

I introduced myself to Joe and told him that, if I'd gotten 50,000 more votes last November, he would have been standing in McHenry County, not in Kendall County.. He told me I ought to run again. I didn't look up Joe's age until after getting home. He was born June 14, 1932, which makes him 79 years old. I never would have guessed it.

Keep up the good work, Joe.

Kendall County Sheriff Randall is very personable, and his deputies were in uniform and looked sharp.

Gas $3.49/gal. in Woodstock

Don't miss this week-end's gasoline sale at the Mobil Mart on Hwy.. 47, south of U.S. 14, across from the Harley-Davidson dealership.

The station has new ownership, and I think earlier today Star 105.5 was there.

The sale continues tomorrow (Sunday, August 28), and prices go back up on Monday morning. Stop inside, too. They invite your business.

I went by on the motorcycle about 7:30PM and filled up. Went home, got the car and went back. You'll save over 30¢/gal. The other stations in town are probably wondering why they have no business...

Wanted: hypnosis partner

As many of you know, I have been involved in hypnotherapy work since 1992, when I studied and worked with Dr. Irene Hickman of Kirksville, Mo.

I am looking for a partner to work with me in a certain type of hypnosis session. I get frequent requests for a type of hypnotherapy that requires a second person. This second person would serve as a hypnotized person and together we would do the work requested by a person who does not live here and who would not be present during the session. Recently, I received requests from a man in Georgia (USA) and from a man in Poland.

This is not pro bono work. Clients pay to have this work done by competent practitioners. I've been involved in this work for 18 years and am, frankly, good at it. I have trained others and have co-conducted workshops at professional conferences.

If you are interested in learning more about it, please email me at gus@gusphilpott.com

Quinn waters down FOIA law

King Quinn has driven a spike right through the heart of FOIA laws in Illinois. But it's not all his fault. Don't forget the members of the Illinois House of Representatives and Illinois Senate who voted for the bill, so it could go to his desk in the first place.

The Northwest Herald reports online today that Quinn signed a bill (too bad the NWH didn't provide the number of the Bill) to give public bodies more time to response to requests from "recurrent requestors". What were they (we) called just a few weeks ago?

Government will now have 21 days to respond. More worrisome is the language in the bill that allows governments to charge for the actual costs in retrieving information.

Just imagine what will happen to a FOIA request and the bill for charges that will accompany a response. Let's say that you mail your FOIA request:

Cost to deliver envelope containing the request from the mailroom to the FOIA officer's desk?
Time for the FOIA officer's secretary to open it and unfold the pages?
Time for the secretary to scan the letter?
Time for the secretary to walk it to the FOIA officer's desk and place it in the in-box?
Time for the FOIA officer to read and comprehend the request?
Time for the FOIA officer to order the materials for the response?
Time for the delegated employee to hunt down the materials for the response?
Time for the FOIA officer to dictate the response?
Time for the secretary to type the response?
Time for the FOIA officer to review, edit, correct the secretary's typed draft?
Time for the secretary to make the changes?
Time for the FOIA officer to approve the final response?
Time for the secretary to type the final draft and print it?
Time to photocopy the documents to be included?
Time to count the pages and calculate the cost of the documents (are the first 50 still free?)?
Time for the FOIA officer to approve the final package and sign the cover letter?
Time for the secretary to get everything into an envelope and send it to the mailroom for postage?
Time for the mail clerk to carry it to the mailroom?
Time for the mailroom clerk to weigh and apply postage and put it in outgoing mail?

Who will be able to afford a bill for a FOIA request??? Good goin', guv...

Marengo "area" burglaries

According to the McHenry County Sheriff's Department (as of this afternoon),

Ø  "There have been three residential burglaries in the unincorporated Marengo area (Oleson, Coral and Pringle Rd.), during the past several weeks.  

 

Ø "Stolen has been personal property i.e.; jewelry, television, etc.

Ø "No one has seen or confronted the offenders. 

Ø "There is no information that anyone is carrying a weapon, during these crimes. 

Ø "All of the houses have been forcibly entered through a rear door or patio door. 

Ø "(MCSD) Patrol Bureau and Investigations Bureau are working on these cases. 

Ø "While researching the cases (it was) determined that there were several burglaries that occurred in Boone, Ogle, and DeKalb county. 

Ø "(MCSD is) sharing information and working together with their Offices to identify and arrest the offenders.

 

"There have not been any reports of anyone confronting these suspect(s) or any violence associated with these crimes.

 

"As always it is important for homeowners to lock your homes and vehicles when you are away, and report suspicious activities and/or people to the police.  We have been and will continue to be in the area conducting extra patrols with marked and unmarked squad cars.  Please feel free to contact our Office if you have any information.  Criminal Investigation Division:  Lt. James Popovits  815-334-4750."

Eavesdropping trial due to start Aug. 29

Remember way back on April 14, 2010, when the Northwest Herald carried an article about the arrest of Alexander Henson, then 25, for recording police and their conversation in a house in McHenry. The cops allegedly told him to stop recording with his cell phone and then arrested him.

Case No. 10CF000388 has been dragging its way through the court system and is set for a jury trial before Judge Prather on Monday, August 29 at 9:00AM. Will it go?

On recent court dates of April 11 and May 24, the State's Attorney's office made motions to continue the case. What will happen on August 29? Will the State's Attorney's Office, which is prosecutiing this case for the McHenry P.D., ask that charges be dismissed?

Will Henson roll the dice and proceed with a jury trial? Certainly, his attorney (at the law firm of Kililis Ridings & Vonau) and he have read the recent Cook County case in which a jury found a defendant not guilty of recording cops (eavesdropping (recording cops without their permission) is a felony in Illinois).

You can read the August 25th Chicago Tribune story here The story includes: "On Wednesday, though, a Criminal Court jury quickly repudiated the prosecution's case, taking less than an hour to acquit (Tiawanda) Moore on both eavesdropping counts."

Or will he not roll the dice and plead to some small, reduced, misdemeanor offense, pay a small fine and walk away from it?

Why does alleged killer still have public defender?

At an early court date (June 3) of Timothy S. Smith, charged with murdering Kurt Milliman, the judge asked Smith if he had an attorney. When he answered that he didn't, the judge appointed a public defender. At the time it seemed to me to be a stop-gap measure, so that Smith would not be unrepresented.

Now, two and one-months later, Smith still has a public defender. Yet he has never applied for one and has never filed a financial affidavit to indicate whether or not he is entitled to a public defender.

WHY NOT?

The State should challenge the continued participation of the Public Defender. Why hasn't it?

If Smith is indigent and has no income (it's hard to have an income when you're in jail on a first-degree murder charge and can't make a $900,000 bail) and no assets, then let him say so and get a public defender appointed in the proper manner. Is his wife working? Does she have assets?

Is the legal door being left wide open for Smith to say in the future that he was not property represented and get any future conviction thrown out?