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Roger Goodell (left) and Kyle Fuller
Craigslist rapist gets 36 years McHenry County judge calls Woodstock man a ‘predator’ at sentencing hearing On the Web
By CHELSEA McDOUGALL cmcdougall@shawmedia.com
For a timeline of Charles Oliver’s trial and conviction, visit NWHerald.com.
WOODSTOCK – Charles Oliver will be well into his 70s by the time he’s eligible for parole for raping women he met on Craigslist and other websites.
A McHenry County judge on Thursday handed down a 36-year prison sentence for the Woodstock man, and in doing so, called him a “predator” who sought vulnerable women. Oliver’s accusers were prostitutes or escorts. There
were eight victims in all. “You made a choice to prey on young women, women you believed wouldn’t go to the police,” Judge Sharon Prather said. In February, Oliver was found guilty of criminal sexual assault and unlaw-
FOX RIVER WATERSHED STUDY ONGOING
charges based on evidence recovered from the investigation – namely photographs and videos of unidentified women. Prather said she had the “displeasure” of watching
ful restraint in what attorneys expected to be the first of eight trials. In March, he eventually pleaded guilty to two additional sex crimes and the remaining charges were dropped. Prosecutors also agreed not to bring any further
See SENTENCING, page A6
School funding data fuel reform debate Suburbs losing aid to downstate By KERRY LESTER
By the numbers
The Associated Press
Photos by Kyle Grillot – kgrillot@shawmedia.com
Cary Assistant Public Works Director Mike Walsh explains the usage of aerating centrifugal pumps Tuesday inside the Cary Public Works Wastewater Treatment plant. Both Cary and Fox River Grove are expecting to have to make significant upgrades to their wastewater treatment plants in the next few years as part of their permit from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.
Sewer plant upgrades possible Cary, FRG preparing to make changes to meet new IEPA requirements By JOSEPH BUSTOS jbustos@shawmedia.com When sewage comes into Cary’s wastewater treatment plant, it goes through a series of tanks, digesters and clarifiers. At times during that process, the water is a nice brown chocolate color with a little bit of foam. That activated sludge means microbes are breaking down the sewage and absorbing nutrients as a natural way of processing wastewater. Eventually the water becomes clear and is discharged into the Fox River. The process might be
adjusted or a step might be added at the Cary plant, as the village awaits for new requirements from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. Permits for Cary and Fox River Grove to run their wastewater treatment plants have expired, and they are awaiting their new five-year permits from the IEPA. The main sticking point for the permits is how much phosphorous the plants will be required to filter out of the wastewater before discharging it into the Fox River. Downstream communities,
Activated sludge samples (left, center) and raw waste samples sit inside the Cary Public Works wastewater treatment plant. IEPA permits last five years, and the Cary plant is looking into various ways to comply with new regulations.
See SEWER, page A6
LOCALLY SPEAKING
Kyle Grillot – kgrillot@shawmedia.com
See SCHOOLS, page A6
OFFICIALS SEEK FIX FOR WATER SYSTEM
LOW
Complete forecast on A8
$13.1 million decrease for Palatine schools compared to funding received in the 2011-12 school year.
What they say “It looks like, yet again, this is an attempt to reach into the suburban pockets to solve other people’s problem.” State Sen. Matt Murphy R-Palatine
“The circumstance that we have to account for is that we have districts that even if they wanted to, couldn’t tax themselves enough to achieve equity. ... So, this isn’t about punishing or rewarding. This is about accounting for that disparity.” Sen. Andy Manar D-Bunker Hill
by Leadings Lawyers Network and AVVO.
CARY: Cary-Grove dominates, takes home sixth straight FVC track and field championship. Sports, C1 Peggy Gerkin
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decrease in overall state aid for schools in Palatine under Sen. Andy Manar’s school funding plan, or a
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McHenry County’s
MARENGO City officials want to borrow $3 million and refinance $1.97 million of existing debt to pay for various water system upgrades that shouldn’t force aldermen to raise Marengo residents’ water rates. The City Council will hold a public hearing May 27 on the financing plan. For more, see page B1.
Cary-Grove’s Erika Sternard (left)
SPRINGFIELD – Newly released figures that show downstate school districts gaining at the expense of suburban ones have fueled a debate among lawmakers about a proposed overhaul of the complicated school funding formula that Illinois has used for almost two decades. The state Board of Education database, released Wednesday, details the estimated impact to the state’s 860 school districts under state Sen. Andy Manar’s proposed school funding fix, perhaps the most serious effort to overhaul the state’s school funding formula since 1997. Advocates say the database more clearly illustrates how the proposal would provide equity to rich and poor districts across Illinois. Under the plan, the vast majority of total state education funding would be distributed by factoring in districts’ poverty levels. But the specifics of how much money school districts stand to gain or lose also points up the political risk for lawmakers being asked to vote for such legislation during an election year. School districts in the Chicago and St. Louis suburbs would see major cuts to state aid, and lawmakers in vulnerable swing districts may be hesitant to anger voters. “It looks like, yet again, this is an attempt to reach into the suburban pockets to solve other people’s problem,” Republican state Sen. Matt Murphy, R-Palatine, said in response to the numbers. The chances for passage of the funding overhaul this spring are limited, but advocates are pushing hard to build support for it. A group of downstate school superintendents packed a news conference Thursday at the state Capitol to detail hardships their districts