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Tuesday, March 12, 2013
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Ag business puts down roots in Sycamore
Cold case recap deemed inadequate ‘48 Hours’ episode on McCullough trial disappoints families involved By JEFF ENGELHARDT jengelhardt@shawmedia.com SYCAMORE – Charles Ridulph and his family hoped CBS’ “48 Hours” special on a 55-year-old cold case would banish any question of Jack D. McCullough’s guilt. The special, called “Cold as Ice,” followed McCullough’s conviction last year for murdering Charles Ridulph’s sister, 7-year-old Maria, in December 1957. She disappeared after a man named Johnny approached her
and a friend, Kathy Chapman, playing outside. Chapman went inside to get mittens and when she returned, Maria and Johnny were gone. Instead, Charles Ridulph said, the show focused more on the alleged rape of McCullough’s half sister Jack D. – a charge on which McCullough McCullough was cleared – before posing the possibility McCullough was actually guilty
of the rape and not of the murder for which he was convicted. “I must say that my sister Pat and I were very disappointed in the program, but perhaps we were just looking for too much,” Charles Ridulph said. “A one-hour program could not possibly accomplish all that we were looking for.” The Nielsen live plus same day ratings indicate an average of 5.46 million viewers tuned in for the special, said Richard Huff, CBS News’ executive director of communica-
tions. The program included interviews with McCullough, those most closely involved with the case and witnesses who testified at the trial, but Ridulph said the show failed to lay out the evidence that establishes McCullough’s guilt. He said the program failed to explain McCullough’s mother’s deathbed confession that indicated her son could have committed the crime,
On the Web Those interested can still see the full episode online and extra content at www.cbsnews.com/video/48hours/.
Voice your opinion Do you agree with Jack D. McCullough’s conviction for Maria Ridulph’s 1957 murder? Vote online at Daily-Chronicle.com.
See McCULLOUGH, page A6
DeKalb PROPOSALS KINDLE UNCERTAINTY reviews policing strategy By DAVID THOMAS dthomas@shawmedia.com DeKALB – DeKalb aldermen expressed support for the different efforts police officers and other city officials have taken to reduce crime in the city. Mayor Kris Povlsen said in an interview after Monday’s meeting that the different proactive policing measures – the administrative tow and the new housing bureau – were necessary. “We do know there are people coming here into this community or live in this community really don’t have the best interests of the community in mind,” Povlsen said. “I was impressed with the fact that, when people are committing crimes... we have the ability to tow their cars.” In the past 42 days, DeKalb police have towed 78 vehicles that were Gene Lowery connected to illegal activity of some Police chief kind, said Police Chief Gene Lowery. “We aren’t going out and saying, ‘Let’s tow somebody,’ ” he said. Out of those 78 tows, Lowery said the fines for at least 60 cars have been paid outright. Another 12 cars have not been claimed by their owners. Not everyone is a fan of the towing ordinance. Donald Henderson, director of Students’ Legal Assistance at Northern Illinois University, said he had a number of issues with the administrative tow during his comments to the City Council. Henderson said there’s no policy statement connected with the ordinance and as to why the fine for these kinds of tows are set at $500. “Is this revenue?” Henderson said to the council. “If it is, let’s say so.” City Attorney Dean Frieders said in an interview after the meeting that the ordinance is not about revenue. “[Other communities] experience an appreciable decrease in the type of crimes this ordinance is addressing,” Frieders said.
See POLICING, page A3
Kyle Bursaw – kbursaw@shawmedia.com
Maria Star-Lopez covers Oreos in chocolate Friday at The Confectionary in DeKalb.
Higher minimum wage could hurt some employees By STEPHANIE HICKMAN shickman@shawmedia.com Todd Hendrey hopes he doesn’t have to raise the price of candy at The Confectionary. But with the recent proposals by Gov. Pat Quinn and President Barack Obama to raise the minimum wage nationally and statewide, Hendrey may need to make some adjustments to his business. “With the economy the way it
is, it’s going to be tough,” he said. In his State of the Union address Feb. 12, Obama suggested increasing the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $9 an hour. Quinn also proposed an increase in his State of the State address Feb. 6, in which Illinois’ minimum wage would go from $8.25 to $10 an hour. If the minimum wage is increased, Hendrey said he and his wife, Betsy, hope to keep their
business running as usual without making any major changes, such as reducing staff. They have locations at 149 N. Second St. in DeKalb and 235 W. State St. in Sycamore. “As long as I can financially do it, I would keep people on,” he said. “People have to feed their families.” DeKalb Chamber of Commerce
“Anytime you make a change, people have to make adjustments. ... The reality is it may help some individuals. But it may hurt them as well.” Matt Duffy, Executive director of the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce
See PROPOSALS, page A6
Illinois settles SEC fraud charge over pensions By JOHN O’CONNOR The Associated Press SPRINGFIELD – Federal authorities announced Monday that Illinois has agreed to settle a securities-fraud charge that accused the state of misleading investors about the financial health of its public-employee pension systems, which are now $96.7 billion short of what’s needed to cover promised retirement benefits. In a cease-and-desist order issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission, Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration admitted no wrong-
doing in the way state officials borrowed money to pay pension obligations through $2.2 billion in municipal bond sales from 2005 to early 2009. The SEC began its investigation in September 2010, shortly after signing an agreement with New Gov. Pat Jersey over similar Quinn pension disclosures. Quinn’s assistant budget director, Abdon Pallasch, said the governor began making changes before the investigation started and that the
SEC agreed his office cooperated fully in its review. Quinn, a Democrat, took office in January 2009. The charge revolves around how well Illinois officials publicized their handling of seriously underfunded public-employee pension accounts. Quinn and the Legislature say they have made finding a solution this spring their priority. The SEC alleged that the state made misleading statements about how much pension reforms would save or that it omitted statements about the full impact of underfunding problems. “The state failed to disclose the
effect of its unfunded pension systems on the state’s ability to manage other [spending] obligations,” the SEC order said. “The state also did not inform investors that rising pension costs could continue to affect its ability to satisfy its commitments in the future.” The SEC reported that Illinois has taken several steps to improve the situation, including using attorneys devoted to disclosure, expanding exposition in the pension section of bond-sale documents, and establishing formal disclosure
See ILLINOIS, page A6
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