TUESDAY
Dece m be r 16 , 2014 • $1 .0 0
MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL Bears drop to 5-9 with 31-15 loss to New Orleans Saints / C1
HIGH
LOW
42 21 Complete forecast on page A8
NWHerald.com
THE ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER PUBLISHED IN McHENRY COUNTY
Facebook.com/NWHerald
@NWHerald
Ill. AG weighs in on vacancy
Municipal election filings underway
Quinn, Rauner both can appoint new comptroller By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com
Sarah Nader – snader@shawmedia.com
McHenry County Clerk Mary McClellan (left) helps Fox River Grove District 3 School Board member Thomas Mollet on Monday, the first day to file election petitions for the spring consolidated municipal elections, at the McHenry County Clerk’s office in Woodstock.
Inside The filing period for April 7’s municipal election is now open. Turn to PAGE A6 to learn which candidates have filed.
Candidates turn in paperwork on 1st day of filing By EMILY K. COLEMAN ecoleman@shawmedia.com
and STEPHEN Di BENEDETTO sdibenedetto@shawmedia.com
On the web For the most up-to-date list of candidate filings, visit NWHerald.com.
Voice your opinion Have you ever run or considered running for local elected office? Vote online at NWHerald.com.
Monday marked the first day most candidates could file for the spring municipal elections. Most villages and cities saw a sprinkling of candidates turn in their paperwork for the various village president, mayoral, trustee and council positions. But the city of Woodstock, which had an earlier filing deadline because enough candidates can trigger a primary election, had eight candidates file for three open spots. Incumbent Woodstock City Council members Mark Saladin and Maureen Larson will vie for new terms alongside six other candidates looking to join the council for the first time. Member Julie Dillon, who has served on the council since 2005, de-
“New blood is interested. I think it’s good for our village to have new blood. I have absolutely no beefs with my current board, and I told the people that are running that I would be supporting my current village board.” Mark Eisenberg Spring Grove village president cided not to run for re-election. The opening left by Dillon and a growing disconnect between the council and its community likely drove
a crowded field for the upcoming municipal election, said Don Frick, a first-time candidate whose family owns The Backdrop in the Woodstock Square. “It’s truly a response to the disconnect between the City Council and the community,” Frick said. “They are making decisions somewhat in a vacuum.” Saladin welcomed the full slate of candidates, but he said his experience with various organizations throughout the community makes him qualified for another term. If elected, he wants to use that involvement to help the city rebound economically from the recession. “I’m involved enough in the community that I think I can make the decisions that will move the city forward,” Saladin said. Daniel Hart, who owns D.C. Cobb’s
Filling the vacancy of late Republican Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka will be the job of both outgoing Gov. Pat Quinn and Gov.-elect Bruce Rauner, Attorney General Lisa Madigan concluded Monday. Madigan stated in her legal analysis that Quinn has the power to appoint a replacement to fill the remainder of Topinka’s term, which expires Jan. 12. But Rauner will have the authority to make the ap- Lisa Madigan pointment to the four-year Inside term when he takes the oath of office. n Rich But Madigan Miller: Topinka also implored treated others R a u n e r a n d like old friends. the General PAGE A2 Assembly to hold a midterm election in 2016 for the office. Topinka’s sudden death from a stroke Dec. 10, in between her Nov. 4 re-election to a second term and her swearing in next month, created something of a constitutional quandary. But Madigan concluded the timing of her death makes it two distinct events as defined by the Illinois Constitution. It creates an immediate vacancy on her existing term, meaning it is up to Quinn to appoint a replacement. But it also falls under the “failure to qualify” provision because she cannot take the oath to her new term, meaning it falls to Rauner to fill it. Madigan said her conclusion comes from the language in the 1970 Constitution and from the report of the committee that drafted its language. “Although the current vacancy in the comptroller’s office and the anticipated failure of the comptroller-elect to
See CANDIDATES, page A6 See VACANCY, page A6
Chicago thieves adopt ‘crash-and-grab’ tactics in brazen burglaries By DON BABWIN The Associated Press CHICAGO – All the burglars use the same audacious tactics: A vehicle crashes through a storefront in the wee hours and up to six people in dark clothing and ski masks pour out, grabbing whatever they can with the speed of a NASCAR pit crew. Then the thieves dash out over the broken glass to a waiting getaway car. Since September, at least a
dozen “crash-and-grab” burglaries have been reported at retail businesses in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs. Some targeted highend businesses, including a Neiman Marcus store on the famed Magnificent Mile. Others struck less affluent locations such as a pawn shop on the South Side and clothing stores on the far West Side. The thefts have made shop owners nervous, and police still are pursuing their first arrest.
“Everybody’s on edge. Everybody’s worried it’s going to happen to them,” said Randy Cohen, who has been in the pawn-shop business for some 40 years and never seen this kind of fear among fellow business owners. It’s not clear whether the same people are behind the heists, but the methods appear almost identical. In each case, the thieves use cars and trucks as battering rams to smash through glassy storefronts and, in at least one
case, a brick wall. Police say they suspect the early incidents may have inspired others to copy the idea. “What these crews do is basically assault the building,” said Eugene Roy, commander of a detective division for the Chicago Police Department. “These operations are very well planned.” In less than two minutes, the thieves have made off with expensive jeans and other clothing, jewelry, tools, purses and anything else they
can pull out of display cases or off the sales floor. Then they run away, leaving behind the debris-covered vehicles, which often turn out to be stolen. “You watch the video and from the time the car crashed through the door to the time they all ran away, it was less than a minute and a half,” said Daniel Petka, a spokesman for the police department in suburban Northbrook after watching a recording that showed a thieves clearing the
SPORTS
LOCAL NEWS
WORLD
WHERE IT’S AT
Another outlet
Levy vote
Deadly siege
Marian Central’s Stone quits soccer, has promising strongman future / C2
School District 47 Board unanimously approves tax levy increase / A3
Barrage of gunfire leaves 2 hostages, gunman dead in Sydney cafe / B4
Advice ................................ D7 Buzz.....................................C8 Classified........................D1-8 Comics ...............................D8 Community ........................B1 Local News.....................A2-7 Lottery................................ A2
shelves of a Louis Vuitton store early on Nov. 18. The burglaries are not entirely new. Video of cars crashing through the front windows of convenience stores and other businesses can easily be found online. In the early 1990s, in New York, authorities indicted members of a highly organized group that crashed into fur salons, jewelry stores and art galleries, making off with paintings, mink coats and other loot.
Nation&World...............B3-4 Obituaries ......................... A7 Opinion...............................B2 Puzzles ............................D6-7 Sports..............................C1-7 Stocks................................. A7 Weather .............................A8