District 116 News & Events

Jarratt and Bednar Get Lake County Life PAC Endorsement

January 27th, 2012

Gene Carey

Lennie Jarratt, Republican candidate for State Senate in District 31 and Bob Bednar, Republican candidate for Lake County Recorder of Deeds, both received the endorsement of the Lake County Life PAC.

Lake County Life PAC looks at three factors in their decision to endorse candidates; 1) Their position on the Life issues. 2) Their voting record on the Life issues. 3) The strength and viability of their campaign.

In endorsing the two candidates, Lake County Life PAC Chair
Bonnie Quirke, issued the following statements:

“(regarding Jarratt) Lake County Life PAC is pleased to announce your endorsement, as the Republican candidate for Lake County Senate District 31. We based this endorsement on your strong stance on life issues, your strength as a candidate and your willingness to defend the dignity of every human being.”

Bob Bednar, Republican candidate Lake County Recorder of Deeds

“Lake County Life PAC is proud to announce our endorsement of Bob Bednar as the Republican candidate for Lake County Recorder of Deeds. Based on his strong 100% stance on Life issues as well as his strength as a candidate, we believe that Bob Bednar is uniquely qualified to serve the people as the Lake County Recorder of Deeds in the Republican Primary. We urge all pro-lifers in Lake County to give him their support and their vote.”

Both Jarratt and Bednar recently received the Wauconda Township Republican Club endorsements as well, with the following comments:

The candidates were questioned as to how they can perform services more effectively without driving up expenses and inflating their budgets. With this in mind the WTRC membership has endorsed Bob Bednar for Recorder of Deeds

Lennie Jarratt, Republican candidate for State Senate District 31

The four candidates for 31st District State Senate had many attributes in their favor. Lennie Jarrett stood out because of his long interest in improving education in Illinois. Mr. Jarrett brings new ideas for improving education instead of the long standing demand by administrators of more money. The focus must be on what’s best for children and their parents. Mr. Jarrett has shown his leadership in education by exposing political “cronyism” on a local school board and by promoting reasonable solutions to the recent Zion Benton teacher’s strike. Mr Jarrett believes that the 66% income tax increase has truly overburdened families and must be repealed. Lennie Jarrett has the WTRC endorsement for State Senate for 31st District.

Yingling Launches On-line Petition: www.StopSandy.com

January 23rd, 2012

Gene Carey

PRESS RELEASE
Monday, January 23, 2012

Yingling Launches On-line Petition Urging Cole to Stop Unfunded Mandate
www.StopSandy.com

Sam Yingling launches "Stop Sandy" petition drive

Round Lake Beach- Over the weekend, three more area legislators joined the growing movement against the unfunded Legislative Scholarship Program. Senator Susan Garret, Representative Elaine Nekrtiz, and Representative Karen May have voluntarily opted-out of the controversial program that has been under heavy scrutiny for abuse, and which the State has no ability to pay.

This comes at the same time major media outlets have editorialized against continuation of the Program and watchdog groups, like the Better Government Association and the Illinois Policy Institute, have turned-up the heat on legislators who, despite the State’s dire financial distress, continue doling them out.

One of the few hold-outs north of Chicago is Representative Sandy Cole.

Avon Township Supervisor Sam Yingling, an outspoken critic of government waste, has made multiple public calls for Cole to stop but to no avail.

“She has it in her direct control to stop spending, what’s baffling is she continues,” said Yingling, “Isn’t this the attitude that has resulted in Illinois having insurmountable deficits?”

The results-oriented Yingling refuses to relent. He has launched an online petition at www.StopSandy.com to mount more public pressure. The site also includes a time-clock that logs the time since he made his first plea for her to voluntarily withdraw from the program.

“Leadership takes action and Cole needs to be held accountable,” explained Yingling, “for too long she has operated under the radar, saying one thing to our constituents and doing another in Springfield. This isn’t a stunt; it’s a way to ensure she does the right thing.”

Cole voted to end the tuition waiver during a House vote last March but has continued to use the perk. Yingling was quoted last week, calling this “pure hypocrisy.”

“President” Gingrich Without His Hairpiece

January 23rd, 2012

Gene Carey

Newt Gingrich with his well manicured hairpiece

Newt Gingrich if he decides to quit wearing the hairpiece

Have you ever wondered what candidate Newt Gingrich would look like without his hairpiece? You really didn’t believe that well manicured coiffure was his did you? No, unfortunately Newt is one of those hair follicle challenged men that feels better off wearing a toupee which may have also served him well with the ladies.

To see how he might look as our President if he ever decides to ‘gradually’ faze out the wig, I removed his hairpiece.

So, what do you think? Would you still vote for Newt? He certainly wouldn’t be the first President with a shiny head. Actually, I think he would look just fine without the toupee and might even enjoy not having to mess around getting it in place and keeping it there all day long. My bet is that if he is elected, you will see a very gradual elimination of the hairpiece with new ones showing less and less hair until he gets to just his own. He could simply blame it on the stress of the job!

Does Circuit Court Clerk’s Office Need New Leadership?

January 21st, 2012

Gene Carey

Chief Deputy Clerk Keith Brin

In yet another example of why the Circuit Court Clerk’s office needs a general overhaul (see Stop & Desist order), the SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS issued an opinion dated January 20th which indicates that “rogue actions of the Lake County Circuit Clerk” are to blame for illegal court fees assessed against a Public defender defendant.

The opinion was the result of the case: The People of The State of Illinois vs. Elias Gutierrez, in which the defendant argued that several fines and fees had been improperly imposed. At issue is whether the appellate court properly remanded the cause for notice and a hearing on the defendant’s ability to pay a public defender fee when the circuit clerk, on its own, improperly imposed the fee. The defendant held that the fee should have been vacated outright. The appellate court allowed the defendant to supplement the record with a certified copy of a “Party Finance Summary Query” that detailed the fines and fees that had been imposed by the Lake County circuit clerk. One of these was a $250 public defender fee.

Another portion of the finding stated the following regarding the Lake County Circuit Court Clerks office:

In the present case, as well as in Schneider and Dalton, the fee was imposed by the Lake County circuit clerk. At oral argument, defense counsel represented that this is a particular problem in Lake County, with the circuit clerk routinely imposing the fee on its own. Even the State referred to the “rogue actions of the Lake County Circuit Clerk.”

We admonish the circuit clerks in general, and the Lake County circuit clerk in particular, that they may not impose public defender fees on their own. Pursuant to statute, a public defender fee may be imposed only by the circuit court after notice and a hearing on the defendant’s ability to pay. We again remind the trial courts of their duty to hold such a hearing before imposing these fees, and we trust that we will not have to speak on this issue again.

You can read the entire opinion HERE. You will need Acrobat Reader which is available for free download on the internet.

Doper, Sherry Best, Gets 7 Years For Homicide

January 21st, 2012

Gene Carey

Sherry Best gets seven years for sister-in-laws homicide

Sherry Best gets 7 years for homicide

The second person directly responsible for the death of Melissa Best walked away with a sweetheart deal just like her husband, Charles Best, got last year. Sherry Best, who pleaded guilty to drug-induced homicide in the death of her sister=in-law, Melissa, received a light sentence of only seven years rather than the possible 30 years if the case had gone to trial. Considering that most convicts spend less than half of their time behind bars, it’s possible that Best may be out in less than three years.

Charles Best gets sweetheart deal from prosecutors

I reported back on October 27th about the sweetheart deal that Charles Best got for agreeing to testify against his wife. With the case not going to trial it now looks even sweeter as he walked away with two years probation, a small fine, and a few hours of community service instead of a possible five years. How else can you describe it when they both worked together to dispose of Melissa Best’ body by leaving it in a steamy van in the parking lot of a Grayslake complex and then enjoying a snack before returning home to consume what was left of the drugs. He continued to work alongside his brother, Clint Best, without saying a word during the time everyone was searching for Melissa.

Melissa Best

Although Melissa Best was a participant in the earlier doping she did not deserve to be discarded like a piece of garbage by her sister-in-law and brother-in-law. Had 911 been called, this beautiful young lady might still be alive today.

Lake County State’s Attorney GOP Forum in Antioch 1/19/12

January 21st, 2012

Gene Carey

Lake County State's Attorney Candidates Louise Hayes, Mike Nerheim, and Bryan Winter

The Lake Villa and Antioch Township Republican Clubs held a Candidate Forum on January 19th at the Antioch Township Office. The forum was split into two 1-hour segments. The first included the four candidates running for Illinois State Senate in District 31. This video is the second hour which includes the three candidates running for Lake County State’s Attorney. They are Louise Hayes, Mike Nerheim, and Bryan Winter. The person introducing the candidates is Dominic Marturano.

The following video is a bit shaky during the first two minutes as I rushed to get setup again after the break in between the two candidate forums. The last ten minutes were shot with a small backup camera due to a low battery on the main camera but everything is included. ENJOY!

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Illinois State Senate District 31 GOP Forum ~ 1/19/12

January 20th, 2012

Gene Carey

Dominic Marturano introduces the GOP Candidates at the Candidate Forum

The Antioch and Lake Villa Township Republican Clubs held a Candidate Forum on January 19th at the Antioch Township Office. The forum was split into two 1-hour segments. The first included the four candidates running for Illinois State Senate in District 31, Lennie Jarratt, Larry Leafblad, Joe Neal, and Michael White. The second hour included the three candidates running for Lake County State’s Attorney which will be posted here later along with the second hour video.

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