NWH-4-9-2013

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How to create the perfect sleep environment

TUESDAY, APRIL 9, 2013

WWW.NWHERALD.COM

75 CENTS

CUBS HOME OPENER The only daily newspaper published in McHenry Co.

LOUISVILLE 82, MICHIGAN 76

Fans patience starting to wear thin Sports, C1

Edwin Jackson

Planit Style, D1

Cardinals rally from deficit for NCAA title Sports, C1

Luke Hancock

County to pay remaining $378K Special prosecutor bill may drain contingency fund for fiscal ’13 by 75 percent By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com WOODSTOCK – Its legal options exhausted and a court order in hand, the McHenry County Board will pay the full remaining amount billed by two special prosecutors appointed to

Lou Bianchi

investigate vindicated State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi. The board’s Finance and Audit Committee will vote Tuesday morning to recommend paying $378,327 to settle the bill of special prosecutors Henry Tonigan, Thomas McQueen and computer forensics firm Quest Diagnostics.

The county’s legal appeal of the charges officially ended with a March 28 court order to pay the bill. The order comes from McHenry County Judge Gordon Graham, who appointed Tonigan and McQueen four years ago. The bill includes almost $29,000 in inter-

est – a 6 percent annual interest and a per diem interest for every day the bill goes unpaid. County Board Chairwoman Tina Hill, R-Woodstock, said she is not happy with paying the bill, but said she is satisfied the affair resulted in a new law that curtails judges’ ability to appoint

LOCAL ELECTIONS TO BE DECIDED TODAY

HANGING IN THE BALANCE

special prosecutors – a county judge last year rejected two other special prosecutor requests. “What I’m satisfied with is that our legislative delegation was able to pass some restrictions on how special prosecutors

See PAY, page A4

Thatcher changed Britain Iron Lady dies at 87 The ASSOCIATED PRESS

Sarah Nader – snader@shawmedia.com

Volunteer Dale Puralewski (from left) of Huntley, Sally Guge of Huntley and Sharon Kothe of Huntley set up an electronic touch screen voting machine Monday at the Grafton Precinct 22 polling place at Huntley Village Hall.

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id you know today is election day? If you’re a registered voter, it’s likely that less than 18 percent of you will vote in the consolidated election. But take a look at your property-tax bill because the people elected today will be 100 percent responsible for most of the services you pay for, and in some cases, how much you’ll pay. There are mayor and village

president contests in McHenry, Cary, Harvard, Johnsburg, Fox Lake, Island Lake, Hebron, Lakemoor and Barrington Hills, and there are contested races for village boards and city councils in many communities. School boards including McHenry County College, Woodstock District 200, Crystal Lake District 47 and several others also have contested races, as do a few townships, fire boards and

library districts. Every voter in McHenry County also can decide whether to create and fund a new “377 board” taxing district to pay for services for developmental disabilities, and there are a few other local referendum questions. We’ll be keeping score live tonight and presenting as much election information as possible in Wednesday’s Northwest Herald.

LOCALLY SPEAKING Prairie Ridge’s Kirsten Stevens

Sarah Nader – snader@shawmedia.com

ELECTION DAY AT A GLANCE • You still can get candidate profiles, videos and stories by checking the Northwest Herald’s Election Central, elections.nwherald.com. • Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Find your polling place at www.co.mchenry.il.us. • After polls close, Election Central will post live results at NWHerald.com as returns become available. • Join the conversation on Twitter by using the hashtag #NWHElect to interact with other voters, as well as Northwest Herald reporters and editors. • Check out Wednesday’s Northwest Herald for complete coverage.

WOODSTOCK

DISTRICT 300

REPEAL OF GAMING MOVES FORWARD

ONLINE CHARTER SCHOOL REJECTED

A repeal of the county’s ban on video gambling in unincorporated areas is headed to the full McHenry County Board next week for a vote. Many county municipalities allow video gambling, which bar and restaurant owners in rural areas say is not only unfair but also a definite hit to their revenue. For more, see

District 300 board members Monday resoundingly rejected a proposed online charter school that would have taken thousands of dollars away from district coffers. The district had projected to lose anywhere between $535,430 to $906,700 annually in tax dollars, if the charter school was approved.

page B1.

For more, see page B1.

CRYSTAL LAKE: Unlikely heroes propel Prairie Ridge over Woodstock North. Sports, C3

LONDON – Love her or loathe her, one thing’s beyond dispute: Margaret Thatcher transformed Britain. The Iron Lady, who ruled for 11 remarkable years, imposed her will on a fractious, rundown nation – breaking the unions, triumphing in a far-off war and selling off state industries at a record pace. She left behind a leaner government and more prosperous nation by the time a political mutiny ousted Margaret her from No. 10 Thatcher Downing Street. Thatcher’s spokesman, Tim Bell, said the former prime minister died from a stroke Monday morning at the Ritz hotel in London. As flags were flown at halfstaff at Buckingham Palace, Parliament and Downing Street for the 87-year-old, praise for Thatcher and her leadership poured in from around the world. “Margaret Thatcher undoubtedly was one of the most remarkable political figures of the modern world,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said. Putin said Thatcher “made a significant contribution to the development of the Soviet-British and Russian-British ties, which we will always remember with gratitude.”

See THATCHER, page A4

Read more Margaret Thatcher tried to use the athletic arena as a political weapon of sorts during the Cold War, and even took on the soccer establishment as violence at matches damaged the nation’s image. PAGE C2.

WEATHER HIGH

LOW

63 49 Complete forecast on A6

Where to find it Advice Business Buzz Classified Comics Local&Region

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Lottery Obituaries Opinion Planit Style Puzzles Sports

Vol. 28, Issue 97

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