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Thursday, June 19, 2014
SERVING ROCK FALLS, STERLING AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1854
OGLE COUNTY | BEAR WATCH
Mississippi or bust? Bruin treed in Mount Morris, seeking suitable habitat BY KATHLEEN A. SCHULTZ kschultz@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5535
MOUNT MORRIS – The little black bear that’s been wandering around northern Illinois the past few weeks was 20 feet up an oak tree, southwest of Mount Morris off Lowell Park Road, Wednesday afternoon. He was being ogled, photoed and
filmed by a few dozen people until police came to break up the crowd. By evening, he managed to make it down the tree and wander off. An audience, experts say, is the last thing he needs. The bear’s best chance of survival is for people to keep their distance, so he can find his way back to his natural habitat and not
become accustomed to humans, said Chris Young, a spokesman with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. “We have been counseling people to leave him alone. So far, it’s been Earleen Hinton/ehinton@shawmedia.com going really well, so we’re going A black bear that’s been sighted in Ogle and to keep reiterating that message,” DeKalb counties in the past week was found in a Young said. tree Wednesday morning southwest of Mount Morris off Lowell Park Road. BEAR CONTINUED ON A3
WHITESIDE COUNTY | THE SHELEY TRIAL
Justice does not come cheap
WHITESIDE COUNTY| SALES TAX REFERENDUM
Rock Falls boards OK resolutions Superintendents: Property owners stand to benefit BY PAM EGGEMEIER peggemeier@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5570
Illustration by Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
Jury selection in the Nicholas Sheley murder trial began Monday, May 12, in Rock Island. On Thursday, May 29, he was convicted of four murders in Rock Falls in 2008. The 18 days it took to reach the verdict will cost Whiteside County about $100,000, according to County Administrator Joel Horn.
County’s bill $92K so far; more expenses are expected BY CHRISTI WARREN cwarren@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5521
MORRISON – The numbers aren’t final yet, but Whiteside County spent at least $92,000 to put on Nicholas Sheley’s third Illinois murder trial. County Administrator Joel Horn predicted that, once all expenses are figured, the total will hover around $100,000.
Sheley’s first Whiteside County trial, for the murder of Russell Reed, 93, cost the county $85,193.70 – about $115,000 less than what was originally expected, Horn said at the time. Reed was the first of at least six people Sheley killed during what prosecutors have called a weeklong drug- and alcohol-fueled killing spree in the summer of 2008. JUSTICE CONTINUED ON A2
The breakdown s Defense attorney Jeremy Karlin expense: $50,702 s Prosecution expense: $33,103 s Jury expense: $8,316
DIXON SCHOOLS | SUPERINTENDENT REPLACEMENT
District to handle candidate search in fall Outside firm won’t be used; board selects leader for strategic planning BY MATT MENCARINI mmencarini@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5529
DIXON – When the district starts the process of replacing Superintendent Michael Juenger, who will step down after the next academic year, it will begin from inside the district rather than hiring a search firm.
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The School Board discussed the decision during Wednesday night’s meeting and gave Juenger direction on how to proceed. Juenger said he felt the district staff could handle the search itself, which would save the district at least $6,500. He expects to be able to post the job opening in September, and the board
INDEX
BUSINESS ......... A12 COMICS ............... A8 CROSSWORD......B9
will be able to vote on hiring the next superintendent by the end of this year. Posting the job in September, Juenger said, will mean the district is among the first wave to post superintendent openings and will have a better chance to be considered by higher-quality candidates. SUPERINTENDENT CONTINUED ON A2
DEAR ABBY ......... A7 LOTTERY ............. A2 OBITUARIES ........ A4
OPINION .............. A6 PLAN!T ................. A9 SPORTS ...............B1
ROCK FALLS – For the fourth time in 7 years, Whiteside County school districts are looking to get a 1-cent sales tax referendum on the ballot. The tax, known as the County School Facility Sales Tax, was instituted by state law in 2007 as a means of shifting the burden of school funding away from property taxpayers. The boards at two of the counties’ nine districts on Wednesday voted for resolutions to put the facility sales tax on the Nov. 4 ballot. That would bump the county sales tax from 6.75 percent to 7.75 percent. The boards at Rock Falls Township High School District 301, and Rock Falls Elementary District 13 voted in favor of seeking the tax increase. The money from the tax can be used only for maintaining, renovating and upgrading existing school buildings, new construction projects, or paying off bonds taken out for buildings and maintenance purposes. The tax is not assessed for groceries, medication, services, farm equipment, cars, trucks, ATVs, boats, RVs, and mobile homes. Supporters of the tax argue that retiring buildings bonds saves money for the county’s property taxpayers. The Rock Falls Elementary district makes that promise, if the sales tax increase passes. TAX CONTINUED ON A4
Comparison inside See how local counties’ voting percentages on the sales tax referendum compare with notable counties around the state.
Today’s weather High 89. Low 70. More on A3.
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