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The only daily newspaper published in McHenry Co.
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FRIDAY, MARCH 1, 2013
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Boys hoops • sports, c1
Blackhawks blank St. Louis Sports, C2
Lynch: CL Central’s Coach Czes a student of game
Man guilty of murder in shooting
Rich Czeslawski
Shifting
labor
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Husband killed a man who paid to have sex with his wife By SARAH SUTSCHEK ssutschek@shawmedia.com WOODSTOCK – A husband who pimped out his wife on the Internet and then shot a man who responded to an ad for sex was found guilty Thursday of first-degree murder. After more than five hours of deliberation at the McHenry County Courthouse, a jury returned the guilty verdict against Timothy S. Smith, 28, for the death of Kurt Milliman, 48, over Memorial Day weekend 2011. Former McHenry County sheriff’s deputy Scott Milliman said his brother is in heaven, a place Smith will never go. “For taking him away from us, I don’t even know if that’s justice,” Scott Milliman said. The Millimans’ mother, Lorraine Montalbano, was overcome with emotion after leaving the courtroom, barely able to speak. “I’m just so happy,” she said.
Kimberly Smith
Timothy S. Smith
Smith faces a minimum of 45 years in prison and a maximum of 85 at his sentencing April 25. He had been in custody at the McHenry County Jail since his arrest almost two years ago, but his $900,000 bond was revoked after the verdict. Smith’swife,KimberlySmith, testified Wednesday that Kurt Milliman had come to the home on Doty Road near Woodstock to have sex with her. Although over a six-month period she had sex for money with about 50 men, she said she was pregnant and didn’t want to sell herself anymore, so she asked Milliman
More inside
CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy – Benedict XVI left the Catholic Church in unprecedented limbo Thursday as he became the first pope in 600 years to resign, capping a tearful day of farewells that included an extraordinary pledge of obedience to his successor. As bells tolled, two Swiss guards standing at attention at the papal palace in Castel Gandolfo shut the thick wooden doors shortly after 8 p.m., symbolically closing out a pa-
Diocese of Rockford releases statement about pontiff’s departure. PAGE A6
pacy whose legacy will be most marked by the way it ended – a resignation instead of a death. Benedict, who will spend his first two months of retirement inside the palace walls, leaves behind an eight-year term
See POPE, page A6
LOCALLY SPEAKING
By STEPHEN Di BENEDETTO sdibenedetto@shawmedia.com
L
abor unions throughout McHenry County are increasingly concerned that new laws aimed at stripping union power, combined with a growing cultural hostility toward organized labor, are to blame for declining union membership rates nationwide. The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently reported that union membership in both public and private sectors dropped by 400,000 in 2012, to 14.3 million, despite overall employment increasing by 2.4 million. The percentage of union workers fell to 11.3 percent, down from 11.8 percent in 2011, making the percentage the lowest ever since 1983, when the Labor Bureau started tracking annual union membership numbers.
The precipitous drop in organized labor has damaging effects on a U.S. economy driven by consumption that has more workers earning lower wages than ever before, said Ed Maher, spokesman for the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150. “With the decline of organized labor, median wages drop as well,” Maher said. “Everybody should recognize that is a bad thing. ... It’s more people struggling to get by. It’s bad for the economy.” Full-time union workers on average make nearly $200 more a week than non-union members, whose weekly earnings average $742, the Labor Bureau report found. In the construction industry, union workers made $1,086 a week last year versus $722 for nonunion workers.
Jim Dallke – jdallke@shawmedia.com
HIGH
LOW
CRYSTAL LAKE
MCC APPROVES TUITION HIKE
31 17 Complete forecast on A8
CRYSTAL LAKE: Jobseekers line up outside of Covidien for employment fair. Business, F1 Vol. 28, Issue 58
Where to find it Advice Business Buzz Classified
C6 F1-2 C8 F3-14
Comics C7 Local&Region B1-6 Lottery A2 Movies D5
Obituaries Opinion Puzzles Sports
B5 A7 F5 C1-5
• 2012: 14.3 million (11.3 percent) • 2011: 14.7 million (11.8 percent) • 1983: 17.7 million (20.1 percent)
High unionized states (2012) 1. New York: 23.2 percent 2. Alaska: 22.4 percent 3. Hawaii: 21.6 percent 4. Washington: 18.5 percent 5. Rhode Island: 17.8 percent ... 11. Illinois: 14.6 percent
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Voice your opinion Have you ever belonged to a labor union? Vote online at NWHerald.com.
See LABOR FORCE, page A6
McHenry County College raised its tuition by 3 percent Thursday. Tuition costs will go from $99 to $102 per credit hour next year. That means it will cost students taking 12 credit hours $36 more. MCC falls behind other community colleges in the state where the average cost per credit hour is $107.89, according to the Illinois Community College Board. For more, see page B1. Jobseekers wait in line to enter Covidien job fair.
By the numbers
Declining union membership causes concern locally
See SMITH, page A3
Benedict is first pope in 600 years to resign The ASSOCIATED PRESS
Brett Moist – For the Northwest Herald
Kris Spenk, a maintenance worker for the Algonquin Parks & Forestry Division, cuts down tree limbs in the neighborhoods of Algonquin on Thursday. TOP: Spenk cuts down tree limbs.
Winning is no accident. Franks, Gerkin & McKenna 815.923.2107 www.fgmlaw.com