Another FOIA Request Denied - 150MPH Speeder

On May 28 I wrote to the Illinois State Police FOIA officer to request information about the 150MPH speeder on Kishwaukee Valley Road back in January. I knew she had received the request, because she called me for the driver's name. I told her to call the commander of the State Police office in Elgin, out of which the ticket was written. Finally the response came.

I'm still laughing... and planning the Appeal.

Here's what I asked for... date, time and location of violation. speed and how measured. direction of travel. make and model of car. citation number. court date. court location, if not McHenry County. copy of citation and police report.

What was the response?

"Some documents requested are enclosed."

What was enclosed? A statement that the information, if disclosed, would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, unless the driver consented. And that it would consitute an invasion of personal privacy.

There was more. A line of computer codes. At least now I know it happened on Jan. 17 at 2:20PM in Marengo Township in McHenry County. The speed was 145MPH.

What a pile of rubbish! The driver must have a court date that either passed or is coming up because of continuances. How can the public know that justice was served, when the Illinois State Police, funded by taxpayer dollars, withholds general information? You'll notice that I did not ask for the driver's name, home address, or any other personal identifiers.

I want to know when to go to court and watch him weasel out of this ticket. I want to see which high-powered McHenry County attorney represents him and what legal maneuvers are used to get the ticket thrown out. I want to see what judge stands up and protects the public.

Col. Michael R. Snyders and Deputy Director Charles Brueggeemann participated in the decision to deny this FOIA Request. Maybe I'll have to file a FOIA request to learn how many FOIA requests they received in the past 12 months and how many were approved.

Unfortunately, the powers-that-be know they can jerk around the public and try to hide behind FOIA exclusions, unless pushed into Circuit Court, where they would have to explain that they really had no reason to deny a request in the first place.

What kind of "clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy" could occur if the public learned when a driver of a car at 145MPH is supposed to be in court? I have some rights to be safe on the highway. Had I been in front of him, poking along at the 55MPH speed limit, I'd be dead from a rear-end crash when he hit me at a closing rate of 90MPH.

The appeal will be filed with Illinois State Police Director Larry Trent next week. Care to guess what his decision will be? Let's see; what are the hours at the Circuit Court???

"How's My Driving?" Do you call?

Have you seen the stickers on the back of trucks with “How’s My Driving?” Have you ever called to report unlawful driving? Or maybe even called to report safe or courteous driving?

Today I was tailgated in McHenry by a white Chevrolet Astro van owned by Otis – a United Technologies Company. After the driver tailgated me west on Charles Miller Road (we used to call it Bull Valley Road) from Green Street, the traffic stopped westbound for the red light at Route 31.

The driver pulled up very close to me before turning into the center, no-passing lane to access the left-turn lane at Route 31 early. He didn’t get through the light, and guess who stopped right alongside him when the light for through traffic changed??? You betcha!

That was where I got his license plate number (60 244G), and the phone number to call to report unsafe driving (800) 827-SAFE. And his truck Unit No. – ZT 936.

Won’t he be surprised in a day or two when his manager asks him just where in tarnation did he think he was going in such a hurry?

Of course, the police are never around when you need them (or want them). But this is the next best, and it’s probably more effective than a ticket and Court Supervision. If an employer gets very many calls about bad driving, we can only hope they will take stern action to keep their vehicle liability rates down.

$3.07 or $3.23???

How come we are still getting ripped off on gas prices in Woodstock? Check www.gasbuddy.com for prices. $3.23/gal. is the lowest right now in Woodstock.

But in Crystal Lake? $3.15/gal. all up and down US 14 right through Crystal Lake.

And, at the corner of IL 31 and IL 62 in Algonquin? How about $3.07/gallon?

Tonight I bought a little gas at Jewel Express and, after paying outside and pumping, went inside for the manager's name and phone number. I complained to the girl behind the counter (like she could do something about it; right?) and told her and the other customers that we are getting ripped off in Woodstock.

It wasn't long ago that gas prices in Woodstock were usually less than in Crystal Lake. No longer!

Check out www.gasbuddy.com regularly. Right now $3.04 all up and down Randall Road in Algonquin.

Oh, brave vandal...

I wonder who the hooligan is who is so brave that he can vandalize a parking sign on the Square. This morning as I stopped on eastbound Jackson at the corner of Johnson St., right alongside the Woodstock Square Mall, I noticed that the 2-Hour Parking sign had been vandalized.

It must take real courage for someone to stand on the wall or stand on the hood of a car to bend a City parking sign. Perhaps the City could recognize him (or her) at a City Council meeting and give him a plaque, commemorating his civic duty, and then direct the police chief to haul him off the jail.

A good penalty would be seven days in the County jail, a $500 fine, and 30 days of community service wearing a bright orange jump suit with the wording “I vandalized a City sign.” Have him help Public Works replace the sign, and have him walk (what? Walk? Could that be cruel and unusual punishment?) around Woodstock and record the locations of other vandalized and damaged signs.

Residents should report all vandalized, damaged and missing signs to pwdept@woodstockil.gov or by calling 815/338-6118.

On the Square? Where???

This week-end’s highly-touted Woodstock Music Fest was advertised as “on the Woodstock Square.” Really? “On” the Square?

Anyone looking for the Music Fest on the Square Friday night was sorely disappointed. What you had to do was walk OFF the Square, north on Main Street past the movie theater, up the driveway and into the parking lot behind the movie theater.

How in the world did they get away with advertising it as “on” the Square? Had it been “on” the square, listeners could have brought blankets and sat on the grass or on one of the benches on the Square.

Is there anyone is town who thinks that the parking lot west of the movie theater is “on” the Square? If so, raise your hands. Both of you…

There are three common vehicle violations that, in my mind, are closely related to major moving traffic violations:

1. Failure to display front license plates,
2. Heavily-tinted plastic covers over front and rear license plates, and
3. Darkened front side windows, even windshields.

Many will say that it would be a really petty ticket, if a police officer stopped a driver for No Front License Plate and wrote him a ticket. Same with the others.

However, my experience in driving at the legal posted speed limit is that many of the drivers who tear down the road, tailgate me, pass me on the left closely (without fully leaving my lane), and who pass me on the right shoulder and by using exit and entrance lanes on expressways and the Tollway as passing lanes, are drivers whose cars are in such violations.

If a driver is tailgating me (say, about 5’-6’ behind me at 55MPH), I can easily read his front license plate, if it’s there. Of course, if it’s not, I can’t.

Illinois is a two-plate state. License plates are to be displayed on the front and rear of passenger cars. Many drivers of foreign cars don’t display front license plates. Many Corvettes, BMWs, Mazdas, and sports cars do not have front license plates. Gee, it upsets the styling…. Well, too bad. Illinois law does NOT say that you must display two license plates, unless you drive a Corvette!

If a driver passes me recklessly or dangerously close, I can sic the cops on him, but I need to be able to identify him. If the front side windows are heavily (and illegally) darkened, I can’t see the driver. Unless I can get a cop to stop him while he is still in my sight, I am wasting my time reporting him to the police.

And if he has a heavily-tinted plastic lens over the rear license plate, I may not be able to read the plate as he passes me.

It was interesting to hear remarks by the Illinois State Police Sector Commander for three dangerous roadways in northern Chicagoland. When I asked about the correlation between speeders and reckless drivers and the cars with these violations, he said he didn’t know of a study about such a relationship. But he did say that front plates, unobscured license plates, and clear front side windows and windshield are essential to the use of the PhotoRadar van in the construction zones. The photograph needs to show the plates and the driver’s face.

A speeder through a Construction Zone might not end up with only a speeding ticket. If a plate is missing or obscured, he might be ticketed for that, too. Just a little sweetener, don’t you know? (My words.)

Last year I asked a Woodstock police officer to ticket a driver who passed me illegally on U.S. 14 east of the hospital and to ticket him for no front license plate. The officer failed to issue the ticket for the license plate violation. We lost in court because the driver and his passenger lied to the judge, and we didn’t even get him on the front plate violation because the cop failed to write that ticket, even though I requested it orally and in writing. Sometimes you have to take what you can get, and we didn’t even get that one.

Do the police around here write tickets for license plate violations and darkened windows? Not very often.

Watch out! Broken Glass!

One of my readers has asked me to write about the amount of broken glass on sidewalks in Woodstock. Well, okay; here goes…

What kind of rocket scientist lives in Woodstock that he (or she) will just throw down a glass or glass bottle on a sidewalk? Wouldn’t it be nice to catch him doing so? What would you do, if you did?

I’d give him two choices. “Start picking it up, or start preparing your explanation because a cop is going to be here in about two minutes.”

On many sidewalks in Woodstock you can walk through broken glass. Recently there was glass on the sidewalk on West Jackson between Pleasant and Tryon. This was along the parade route. Doesn’t the City check sidewalks after a parade? Probably not.

There was also glass on the sidewalk in front of the large house on the southwest corner of Dean and South Streets. Now, it’s for sure that the owner didn’t go out there and throw down a glass. So, who did?

Another location of broken glass was by the mailbox on the corner of South Jefferson and Fremont Streets.

What can you do when you spot glass on the sidewalk or in the street?

Send an email to the Public Works Department. Write to PWDept@woodstockil.gov You can expect pretty good service. I suggest email, because there is a paper trail for you, and it’s easy for them to handle. If you really like telephoning, call 815/338-6118 during normal business hours; or you can call after hours and leave a message.

Be organized to leave essential details. Give them a street address where the problem is and when you last noticed it. I have found them generally responsive to requests for service.