Second brother dies in Huntley shooting Local&Region, B1
FRIDAY, JUNE 6, 2014
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Public safety pension woes
Man jailed on charge of murder
Rising obligations strain budgets, local officials say By STEPHEN Di BENEDETTO sdibenedetto@shawmedia.com Addressing Chicago’s pension problems this spring, state lawmakers left Springfield without an agreement on another pension issue that local officials fear will squeeze resources for road repairs, neighborhood enhancements and other projects residents desire. A potential bill that addresses ballooning unfunded pension liabilities to suburban and downstate police and firefighter retirement funds never made it to committee, after negotiations led by Sen. Terry Link, DWaukegan, failed between municipal officials and police and fire unions. The lack of consensus on a reform to the more than 600 public safety pensions comes as McHenry County officials see more property tax dollars go toward state-mandated pension contributions. Altogether, the public safety
Accused in death of Island Lake woman
funds are projected to have just more than half of the money needed to pay future retired policemen and firefighters. Suburban and downstate public safety pensions in 2012 had an aggregated $8.4 billion unfunded pension liability, a total that has increased eight-fold since the early 1990s, state figures show. “The only way to correct unfunded liabilities is change the rules or invest more money into it,” Cary Administrator Christopher Clark said. “We have been doing that, but we need help from Springfield until this becomes sustainable.” Cary officials have about 55 percent of the money needed to pay future police retirees, despite the village increasing its police pension contributions 30
By CHELSEA McDOUGALL cmcdougall@shawmedia.com
See PENSIONS, page A8 Shaw Media illustration
WOODSTOCK – A parolee with a lengthy criminal record has been charged with the murder of an Island Lake woman. Howard E. Dibbern, 49, of McHenry remains in custody at the McHenry County Jail in lieu of $2 million bond. He was charged Thursday with two counts of first-degree murder and theft of a motor vehicle, three days after 48-year-old Karen Scavelli was found dead in her home. Island Lake police were called Monday to 735 Dartmouth Drive to check on the well-being of Scavelli when they found her dead in the home. An autopsy revealed she died of blunt force trauma. The details surrounding Scavelli’s death remain unclear. Authorities declined to say how Dibbern and Scavelli knew each except that they were “short-term acquaintances.” Police ask that anyone with information that will help piece together a time line contact the authorities. “Anything we say right now would be speculation at this point,” McHenry County Undersheriff Andrew Zinke said Thursday night. “We’re confident we’ve got the right person in custody.” Dibbern was taken into custody after being treated and released from a Lake
County hospital. Police said he crashed Scavelli’s vehicle into a Mundelein home after leading police on a short chase. He then brandished a knife at officers, who subdued Dibbern with a stun gun, Zinke Howard E. said. Dibbern Zinke declined to comment on the nature of Dibbern’s injuries and whether they were caused by the crash, the knife or the altercation with officers. No Mundelein officers were injured in the confrontation, he said. Dibbern is on parole after serving three years in the Department of Corrections on a weapons charge out of Cook County. He was released April 24, according to prison records. His history of incarceration dates back to 1997, when he was sentenced to five years on a forgery charge out of McHenry County. Other felony convictions include those for theft, residential burglary and aggravated domestic battery. In 2002, Dibbern was charged with misdemeanor domestic battery, in an incident which – according to McHenry County court records – he stabbed his girlfriend with a knife, choked
See MURDER, page A8
Franks asks county for 2 advisory referendums By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com McHenry County Board members’ lovehate relationship with Democratic state Rep. Jack Franks – they love to hate him – may get more intense with his latest initiative. In a letter sent Thursday morning to all 24 board members, Franks asked them to put two nonbinding advisory referendums on the Nov. 4 ballot regarding two of his more high-profile taxpayer initiatives. One would ask voters whether governments should be forbidden from increasing property tax levies if overall assessed value falls. The other asks whether the County Board should shrink to 16 members, each representing their own district instead of the current structure of
six, four-member districts. Franks, of Marengo, said both efforts will gauge the public’s interest in issues which he maintains will decrease their property tax burden. He said he sent out the letter after first approaching County Board Chairwoman Tina Hill, R-Woodstock, who Franks said was not amenable to the referendums. “These proposals are brought to you in the spirit of cooperation, in hopes that by working together we can better serve all the citizens of McHenry County,” Franks said. Hill could not be reached for comment Thursday. But the Republican-dominated County Board, much of which considers Franks a power-hungry meddler, is not likely to give the referendums a warm welcome. It was pressure
LOCALLY SPEAKING
from Franks, most notably in the form of a 2012 referendum to change to a county executive form of government, that resulted in the successful March 2014 ballot initiative to make the County Board chairmanship popularly elected starting in 2016. The referendum proposals, if they are entertained at all, would have to go through the board’s Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs Committee. While Chairman John Jung said he has no problem with the property tax referendum or cutting the board’s size, he has issues over whether the rural western half of the county, which has fought encroaching development, would be fairly represented under single-member districts. Jung also echoed the same concerns over the Franks initiatives that his fellow County
CRYSTAL LAKE ARTIST DEPICTS WRIGLEY’S GREAT MOMENTS John Hanley’s artistic talents have been used to paint scenes on ballpark seats in celebration of Wrigley Field’s 100th anniversary. The seats are designed by various artists with some of the field’s greatest baseball achievements, as well as other events that took place at the field. For more, see page C1.
H. Rick Bamman - hbamman@shawmedia.com
Board members have in the past. “I don’t know why he worries so much about McHenry County,” said Jung, R-Woodstock. “He’s a resident, I’ll give him that, and he has as much right as anybody else to give his opinion on stuff ... but I think he’d be busy enough in Springfield, with the way things are going in the state.” Franks in recent years has made several unsuccessful attempts to pass laws that would forbid governments under the tax cap from raising their property tax rates to compensate for decreasing values with the bursting of the housing bubble. While the letter points out that local governments spent taxpayer dollars for lobbyists to fight tax reform, Franks said
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