WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 1, 2014 • NWHERALD.COM • 75 CENTS
Pyle expected to enter guilty plea Former McHenry County sheriff’s sergeant to appear in federal court on child sex charges Gregory M. Pyle, 38, who previously pleaded not guilty to sex crimes involving a minor, is expected to plead guilty Friday.
By CHELSEA McDOUGALL cmcdougall@shawmedia.com ROCKFORD – A former McHenry County sheriff’s sergeant is expected to plead guilty Friday to charges that he engaged in sex acts with a child and traveled across
state lines to make child pornography. Gregory M. Pyle, 38, has been awaiting trial in federal custody since August 2012. He previously pleaded not guilty to two charges alleging sex crimes involving a minor. According to the federal
complaint, Pyle’s online user names were identified by another man who was under investigation for child pornography. The boy depicted is related to Pyle. The alleged victim told the FBI that Pyle has sexu-
ally abused him since he was about 8 years old, and most of the alleged abuse occurred in Pyle’s Crystal Lake home. The abuse also occurred across state lines in Wisconsin, investigators said. The federal court docket lists a change of plea hearing
See SEX CHARGES, page A11
Pension payments up for Ill. next year
Christmas bird census Watchers say event yielded exciting totals
Report: nearly $7 billion in total
By BRENDA SCHORY bschory@shawmedia.com Birds of a feather flock together, they say, and so it is with birders, as the hardcore watchers bundle up on snowy December days to count their feathered friends. The National Audubon Society’s 113th Annual Christmas Bird Count this month yielded some exciting numbers, volunteers said, as counts in Kane, DuPage, McHenry and DeKalb counties documented the ups and downs of various species. Birds are counted across North America from Dec. 14 through Jan. 5. Volunteers count birds in designated 15-mile diameter circles every year. Results are tabulated and reported to the Illinois Audubon Society. The society then will report to the National Audubon Society, which partners with Bird Studies Canada, the North American Breeding Bird Survey and the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. The McHenry County Audubon group counted 58 species, said Rob Gough of McHenry. “We counted 8,559 individuals, which was way down from our usual 11,000-plus because we had no open water,” Gough said. “We lacked a lot of the water fowl that we normally got. We did get eagles, and a Bonaparte’s gull and a lot of Lapland longspurs. But none of the winter finches, which we had kind of hoped to get with the winter weather.” Genoa resident Karen Lund, who belongs to the McHenry group, said numbers were down because it snowed all day. “Our team had one screech owl and a yellow-rumped warbler,” Lund said. In DuPage County, birders reported two new species, said Jeff Chapman of Woodridge, a member of the DuPage Birding Club. “The American pipit and a
set for 10:30 a.m. Friday before U.S. District Judge Frederick J. Kapala in Rockford. Pyle’s Federal Public Defender Paul Gaziano would not comment on his client’s pending case.
By JOHN O’CONNOR The Associated Press
teers from Chapman’s group and the Kane County Audubon Society. Jon Duerr of St. Charles, a member of the Kane group, said 78 species were counted. “It was a record-breaking year for great blue herons, eastern bluebirds and eagles,” Duerr said. “It’s always exciting to see the eagles flying back and forth across the river. It’s one of the feel-good stories about how the eagle population ... [is] taking advantage of the clean waters of the Fox River now and finding enough to eat here.”
SPRINGFIELD – The amount Illinois must pay to keep pace with its pension systems should grow less than 2 percent next year but still total nearly $7 billion, according to a report released Tuesday. A state actuary’s report released by Auditor General William Holland estimates that taxpayers must pay $6.86 billion in the fiscal year that begins July 1. That’s up about $100 million from this fiscal year. Chicago-based Cheiron was chosen to fill the role of state actuary, a position created in 2012 to review the pension systems’ finances – which are some $100 billion in debt – and suggest ways to fix the problem. It recommended that three systems – covering teachers, university employees and general state workers – lower the annual estimated investment return they expect so projections aren’t too rosy. It made the same suggestion last year but the numbers didn’t change. That rate of return is based on a 30-year average, and re-establishing it each year would interrupt other projections – including how much the state must contribute, said Dave Urbanek, spokesman for the largest pension system, the Teachers’ Retirement System. But he noted that the TRS board, which had established a five-year review, has adopted a three-year schedule. “Our board recognizes in an uncertain economy it needs to be revisited on a quicker schedule,” Urbanek said.
See BIRD CENSUS, page A11
See PENSIONS, page A11
Shaw Media file photo
ABOVE, BOTTOM LEFT: People look for birds on Nelson Lake during a bird walk on New Year’s Day 2013 at Dick Young Forest Preserve in Batavia.
H. Rick Bamman – hbamman@shawmedia.com
A house finch searches for a meal. pileated woodpecker,” Chapman said. “The pipit was counted at Fermilab. They normally migrate to southern Illinois by this time, so this was new.” The pileated woodpecker – made famous by the cartoon character Woody the Woodpecker – was counted in the Elsen’s Hill area of the West DuPage Woods in Winfield. “That is a bird that was not found in the Chicago area for years and years,” Chapman said of the large black woodpecker, known for the brilliant red crest on its head and the bold white stripes on its face and neck.
“[Counting birds has] been done since 1900. That’s 113 years. It provides reliable data on a yearly basis where you can start to notice trends.” Jeff Chapman Woodridge resident, member of the DuPage Birding Club “In the last 10 years, it’s started to move in,” Chapman said. “It kept getting closer to
LOCALLY SPEAKING
AP photo
us, and we finally got them in our area.” Other species with good showings were bald eagles, American robins and eastern bluebirds, Chapman said. “In 20 years, we had zero bluebirds, and this year we had 88,” Chapman said. “We never had one bald eagle until the last 10 years. We counted 25 of them, which broke our record of 20 in 2010.” They also counted 52 great blue herons, breaking its previous high count of 39 in 2006, Chapman said. The Fermilab count, which is half in Kane and DuPage counties, is shared by volun-
HARVARD
TAKE 2
$100K IN DAMAGE, NO INJURIES IN SHED FIRE
MUSICK, ARKUSH TALK BEARS NEEDS IN DRAFT
A shed fire caused about $100,000 worth of damage early Tuesday morning, a Harvard Fire Protection District official said. The fire was contained to a farm equipment shed, about 60 by 25 feet in size, Harvard Fire Protection District Chief Steve Harter said. It was brought under control in about 30 minutes. For
For the fourth time since 2003, the Chicago Bears own the 14th pick in the NFL draft. Previous picks at that spot include Michael Haynes, Tommie Harris and Chris Williams. Tom Musick and Hub Arkush discuss if the team should use the pick to shore up some of the team’s needs on defense, or just grab the best player available.
more, see page A3.
For more, see page B1.
CARY-GROVE: 2008 Cary-Grove grad Mike Glasder aims for U.S. Winter Olympics team spot. Sports, B1
WEATHER HIGH
LOW
20 8 Complete forecast on A14
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Vol. 29, Issue 1
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