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The rundown on Week 7 action SPECIAL SPORTS SECTION
CHURCH MEMBERS HELP TORNADO VICTIMS LOCAL, A3
WEEKEND ENTERPRISE | OPEN GOVERNMENT
Often, minutes remain closed Many agencies neglect reviews required by state of closed-session records BY DAVID GIULIANI dgiuliani@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 525
DIXON – The Dixon City Council last month did something that’s uncommon in government: It released the minutes from six of its closed sessions. At the same time, it decided to keep the minutes from 16 other closed meetings secret because of pending litigation and personnel matters.
Some of those meetings could include discussions about Rita Crundwell, the former comptroller who made off with nearly $54 million over nearly two decades. One such closed session was held the night she was arrested – April 17, 2012. The Open Meetings Act requires public bodies to review minutes of executive sessions twice a year to determine whether the need for secrecy still exists. Or they can
Online extra Go to saukvalley.com to read the six sets of minutes from closed meetings recently released by the Dixon City Council. release the minutes if they no longer see the need for confidentiality. Dixon’s city attorney, Rob LeSage, acknowledged the city hadn’t been reviewing its
closed-session minutes until recently. But the city has plenty of company. Sterling admits it’s behind with its required reviews. “The good thing is we only have a couple of closed sessions a year anyway,” City Clerk Marie Rombouts said. “We don’t have that many.” Lee County, which holds a few closed meetings each year, also hasn’t had such reviews.
WEEKEND FEATURE | FROM THE SEA TO THE BIG SCREEN
A few weeks ago, the Rock Falls City Council held a review and decided to keep all of its closed-session minutes secret. Other governing bodies do open their minutes. Whiteside County recently released the closed-session minutes for three of its Public Works Committee meetings as part of its semiannual review, County Administrator Joel Horn said. CLOSED CONTINUED ON A4
COMMUNITY
Cooking for a captive Good Olde Time A look back at the Olde English Faire last weekend at Stronghold Castle in Oregon. PAGE C12
ROCK FALLS
Father says carnival put daughter, 5, in danger BY MATT MENCARINI mmencarini@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 529
Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
Dustin Brockman of Nelson shows off a hat that was made for him during his service on the U.S.S. Bainbridge. Brockman was a cook on the Navy ship in 2009 when it came to the rescue of Captain Richard Phillips, whose story is being told in the Tom Hanks film “Captain Phillips,” which debuted in theaters Friday.
Nelson man served on Navy ship that served, saved Captain Phillips BY CHRISTI WARREN cwarren@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 521
NELSON – Easter Sunday, April 12, 2009, started out like any other day for Dustin Brockman. A cook on the USS Bainbridge, Brockman – a Nelson native and graduate of Rock Falls High School – was stationed in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Africa when a call came over the
radio that the ship and crew were needed. The reason: A group of Somali pirates had hijacked an American cargo freighter and taken its captain hostage on the ship’s lifeboat. The captain’s name: Richard Phillips. Phillips’ story is being told in “Captain Phillips,” a film starring Tom Hanks, that debuts in theaters this weekend. CAPTAIN CONTINUED ON A9
See the movie “Captain Phillips,” the film starring Tom Hanks depicting the story of cargo freighter Captain Richard Phillips being held hostage by Somali pirates, debuted this weekend. You can see it at the Carmike 8 Sauk Valley, 410 E. 30th St., Sterling. Go to www. carmike.com for showtimes.
ROCK FALLS – A Rock Falls alderman has filed a formal complaint with the state against a carnival operator after, he said, his 5-year-old daughter almost fell from a ride Sept. 21 at the St. Mary’s School Centennial Carnival on the Rock Falls riverfront. John Watts, who represents Ward 4, filed the complaint Sept. 23 with the Illinois Department of Labor’s Amusement Ride and Public Safety Division. A Freedom of Information Act request showed it was the only complaint from the past 5 years on file against the Peoria-based Wilsons Family Show. According to Watts, his 5-year-old daughter and her 10-year-old sister were riding the Orbiter, a ride whose center spins riders in one direction as cars attached to the center spin riders in the opposite direction, and Sophie began to slip under the restraint bar. CARNIVAL CONTINUED ON A9
Few showers
VOLUME 6 ISSUE 7 52 Pages
Today: 72/40 For the forecast, see Page A11
Not enough vets
Trends show fewer veterinarians available to treat livestock herds. See Page C1
Transform your home HGTV’s Kitchen Cousins share secrets Also inside USA Weekend: CBS News’ John Miller and volunteerism Recipe for butternut-squash soup
Index Births................ C5 Markets .......... A11 Business........... C1 Obituaries ......... A4 Classified .......... D1 Opinion............. A6 Comics ............. B6 Scoreboard ...... B5 Community ..... C12 Scrapbook ....... C3 Sports .............. B1 Crossword Saturday ........... D7 State .............. A10 Support groups .. C5 Crossword Sunday ............. C8 Travel .............. C10 Dear Abby ........ C6 Weather.......... A11 Lottery .............. A2 Wheels ............. D8