1 of 2 men charged with concealing crime makes court appearance Reported by ChicagoTribune 10 hours ago.

Patch Lisle, IL --

The target opening date for a proposed Walmart Supercenter has been pushed back several months due to delays.

*Earlier: Walmart to Get Tax Break for New Naperville Supercenter* 

Naperville City Council voted Tuesday night to reflect changes in the schedule of the proposed 170,000 square-foot development, which would be located on 75th Street and Beebe Drive.

After receiving a sales tax rebate of $1.75 million over 10 years, the store will take the place of Walmart’s current Naperville location, 776 S. Route 59.

According to the city, the original agreement required Walmart "to obtain ownership of the property by Jan. 1, 2013 and be open by Jan. 1, 2014." However, Walmart faced delays while finalizing details with the property owner as well as seeking confirmation from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that no wetlands existed on the site of the development.

The proposed site for Walmart is bordered by Springbrook Prairie Forest Preserve to the south and east and was previously part of the forest preserve before it was zoned for commercial use.   

Under the new agreement, Walmart must obtain ownership of the property by April 30, 2013, with the store open and operating by April 30, 2014. 

Naperville City Council members voted unanimously in August to adopt a resolution giving Walmart a sales tax incentive to relocate within the city. Councilman Joe Mcelroy, who was originally on the fence about the development but voted in favor of it in August, had a change of heart Tuesday. 

"It seems like this is one of those rare occasions were we actually get a second crack at the vote and I'm going to take advantage of it," he said.

While Mcelroy was the only dissenting vote Tuesday, other council members continued to stand by the project. 

"This was a good idea then, it's a good idea now," said Council member Grant Wherli. "If we don't do this Walmart goes literally across the street to Aurora taking all sales tax dollars with it, leaving us with a $1 million-hole in our general fund."  Reported by Patch 10 hours ago.

Patch Duluth, GA --

Barbara Howard of Peachtree Corners was honored as Citizen of the Year at the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce’s 65^th Annual Dinner. The award honors individuals who have had the greatest impact on the overall quality of life for Gwinnett County in recent years.

A sold-out crowd of 1,000 business and community leaders attended the Feb. 1 dinner at the Gwinnett Center in Duluth. The dinner was sponsored by Gwinnett Medical Center.

“The dinner serves as a celebration of the people of Gwinnett who – by their service, volunteerism and commitment – allow our community to reach new heights and set goals to strive for in the future,” said Raymer Sale, 2012 Gwinnett Chamber chairman and president of E2E Resources Inc, in a press release issued after the dinner. “Through the efforts of the leaders being honored, the Gwinnett Chamber and the community it serves will continue to thrive and prosper.”

Philip R. Wolfe of Duluth, president and CEO of Gwinnett Medical Center, is incoming president of the chamber.

Howard, founder of Suzanna’s Kitchen located in Duluth and Peachtree Corners, is well known for her philanthropy. Beneficiaries of her generosity include the Boys and Girls Club of America, Habitat for Humanity, the Hudgens Center for the Arts, the Aurora Theater, the American Cancer Society, and Gwinnett Medical Center. She is also a supporter of the Duluth Fall Festival.

She and her late husband, Henry, were the lead donors to the Legacy Campaign that helped build Gwinnett Medical Center-Duluth with a $250,000 donation. The atrium lobby of this facility is named in their honor. Over the past two years she has made a $25,000 personal gift to the Open Heart Campaign and has given $100,000 to create the Barbara Howard Cancer Care Endowment that benefits GMC cancer services. Most recently, Suzanna’s Kitchen made a $100,000 gift to the Open Heart campaign.

Public Service Awards were presented to Duluth Mayor Nancy Harris and Gwinnett Board of Education District 3 Member Dr. Mary Kay Murphy.

Harris is in her second term as mayor. She is active with the Duluth Fall Festival, Barefoot in the Park Fine Arts Festival, the Duluth Fine Arts League, and the Duluth Civitan Club. She also serves as president of the Gwinnett Municipal Association.

Dr. Murphy, who is serving her fifth term on the Gwinnett school board, represents Duluth Cluster schools, all or part of the Collins Hill, Lanier, Norcross, North Gwinnett, and Peachtree Ridge clusters, the Buice School, Monarch School, and New Life Academy of Excellence.

Other Public Service Award winners were Gwinnett Juvenile Court Judge Stephen Franzen; Paige Havens, founder of  Gwinnett’s Great Days of Service; Joe McCart, chairman of the board of the McCart Group; and David McCleskey, governmental liaison and community ombudsman for Gwinnett County Public Schools.

The R. Wayne Shackelford Legacy Award, honoring the memory and legacy of an individual who has made a difference in the history and progress of Gwinnett County, was awarded posthumously to Barbara King.

The Jackson Jinright Charitable Foundation and Partnership Against Domestic Violence received the D. Scott Hudgens Humanitarian Award given in honor of the late developer.

Nancy McGill, owner of Cartridge World in Lawrenceville, received the 2012 Ambassador of the Year Award for her outstanding service to the chamber.

Belk and Micromeritics Instrument Corp. were honored for their long-term commitment to the Gwinnett Chamber. As chamber members for 50 years, Belk and Micromeritics are the first members to have reached this milestone.

The inaugural James J. Maran International Award was presented to WIKA Instrument LP. This award recognizes an international company that located in Gwinnett and became active in the chamber and the local community. The award is named for retired Gwinnett Chamber president & CEO Jim Maran.

Gwinnett County Public Schools CEO/Supt. J. Alvin Wilbanks announced the Jim Maran Scholarship for STEM Studies. The scholarship will be awarded annually beginning this year to a Gwinnett high school graduate who intends to pursue a career in a STEM field. Reported by Patch 3 hours ago.

Patch Lisle, IL --

Nine companies are reportedly preparing for nearly 1,200 layoffs throughout Illinois, including Walgreen's, Kmart and Sun-Times Media, according to Crain's Chicago Business.

Deerfield-based Walgreen's will reportedly lay off 65 warehouse workers in west suburban Berkeley while Kmart, part of Hoffman Estates-based Sears Holdings Corp., plans to lay off 98 employees when it closes a Naperville store in the spring, reported Crain's.

Sun-Times Media, publisher of the Chicago Sun-Times and other suburban papers, warns that 274 jobs in Glenview, Tinley Park and Aurora could be eliminated due to consolidation. Reported by Patch 3 hours ago.

Patch Glenview, IL --

 

Jewel-Osco is trimming three stores from its lineup, and one of them is the store at 8203 W. Golf Road, Niles, the Chicago Tribune reported.

*Earlier:* Will the sale of Jewel-Osco affect local stores?

The store to be shuttered is in the Four Flaggs Shopping Center, at the southeast corner of Golf Road and Milwaukee Avenue, just east of Golf Mill Shopping Center. The other two are in Aurora and on Chicago's South Side the paper reported; the Niles store is slated to close by April 5.

The store is across the street from a Wal-Mart, which has been running ads comparing its prices favorably to Jewel-Osco prices. However, the ads have been criticized by some bloggers, who suggest you can beat both the Wal-Mart and Jewel prices in those ads by shopping sales and/or using coupons. 

The three Jewel-Osco stores which will remain in Niles are:

· 8730 W. Dempster (just west of Greenwood Avenue)
· 7900 N. Milwaukee Avenue (in Oak Mill Mall)
· 5665 W. Touhy Avenue (in Village Crossing Shopping Center)

Like Niles-Morton Grove Patch on Facebook 

*Get Niles and Morton Grove news in a daily email from Patch. It's like getting a free newspaper. Learn more.* Reported by Patch 2 hours ago.

Patch Wheaton, IL --

MONDAY, FEB. 4

*Media Player, Cash Stolen From Unlocked Cars*

Someone stole a media player and $17 from cars in the 1100 block of Grant Street and 2100 block of Aberdeen Court between 10 p.m. Feb. 3 and 6 a.m. Feb. 4. Police said there were break-ins to unlocked cars at four separate homes.

*Felony Theft*

Police charged Carlos Russell, 32, of the 1600 block of Trowbridge Court in Wheaton with a warrant for felony theft in Naperville. He was arrested at the intersection of Blanchard Street and Heritage Lakes Drive around 12:25 a.m. and taken to DuPage County Jail.

SUNDAY, FEB. 3

*Battery*

Police charged Kyaw Eh, 35, of the 1300 block of North Main Street in Wheaton with a warrant for battery. He was arrested near the intersection of Geneva Road and Main Street around 1:40 a.m. and taken to DuPage County Jail.

SATURDAY, FEB. 2

*Warrant, Traffic Offenses *

Police charged Quanell Tatum, 20, of the 700 block of East Evergreen Street in Wheaton with a warrant for traffic offenses. He drove a black 2001 Monte Carlo near the intersection of Roosevelt Road and Washington Street around 7:30 p.m. when police stopped him. He was taken to DuPage County Jail that night.

*Suspended License *

· Police charged Martin Farrelly, 28, of Glen Ellyn with driving on a suspended license. He drove a white 2010 Subaru WRX near the intersection of Naperville and Roosevelt roads around 1:45 a.m. when police stopped him. He was booked at the Wheaton Police Department and released later that morning.
· Police charged Anibal Renteria, 20, of Aurora with driving on a suspended license and illegal use of a license. He drove a white 2001 Mazda near the intersection of Jefferson and West streets around 12:15 a.m. when police stopped him. He was booked at the Wheaton Police Department and released later that morning. 

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--------------------

FRIDAY, FEB. 1

*Suspended License*

Police charged Sheneka Barnett, 23, of Joliet with driving on a suspended license. He drove a silver 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe near the intersection of Belleau Woods Drive and Shaffner Road around 5 p.m. when police stopped her. She was released on the scene.

*Battery*

Police issued a local ordinance citation of battery to Jie Dumond, 40, of the 500 block of South Naperville Road in Wheaton. He was arrested near his home around 12:45 p.m. and released on the scene.

THURSDAY, JAN. 31

*$270 in Perfume Stolen*

Someone stole two bottles, $270 worth, of perfume from a store in Danada Square West between 4:15 and 4:45 p.m.

*Suspended License, Hit-and-Run*

Police charged Bulmaro Garfias, 31, of Chicago with driving on a suspended license and a hit-and-run. He drove a silver 2002 Ford Explorer near the intersection of Heritage Lakes and Blanchard Street around 4:45 p.m. when the incident occurred. He was booked at the Wheaton Police Department and released later that night.

*See also:*

· Education Needed to Fight Heroin Use 'Epidemic' in DuPage County
· Felony Obstruction, Underage Drinking, Drugs: Police Blotter*
*
· UPDATE: Minor Injury in Wheaton House Fire
· Glen Ellyn, Lombard Men Charged in Weekend Home Invasion
· DuPage DUI Arrests, Feb. 3

Police Blotter information is provided by local law enforcement agencies. Charges are not evidence of guilt. They are a record of police actions taken on a given day, and persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. If you or a family member are charged or cited and the case is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to notify the editor. We will verify and report the outcome. Reported by Patch 3 hours ago.

Patch Montgomery, IL --

Two people were nabbed for driving under the influence of alcohol Feb. 2, Montgomery police said.

· Mark Talley, 35, of the 1100 block of Garfield Avenue, Aurora, was arrested at 12:02 a.m. at Montgomery Road and Howell after the vehicle he was driving rear-ended another vehicle, police said. Reports state no one was injured in the accident.
· Olzaneth Juarez, 21, of the 3200 block of Julie Lane, Montgomery, was arrested for DUI after the vehicle she was driving crossed over the center line striking another vehicle head-on at 3:45 a.m. at Route 30 and Griffin, police said. Reports state the driver of the second vehicle was transported to Rush Copley Hospital with non-life threating injuries. Reported by Patch 3 hours ago.

Patch Algonquin-Lake in the Hills, IL --

 

Marriage equality legislation in Illinois was approved Tuesday by a state Senate committee, advancing the measure toward a vote of the full Senate that is expected to take place on Valentine's Day.

The Illinois Senate Executive Committee voted, just as they had a month earlier, in favor of the bill, which would legalize same-sex marriage in the land of Lincoln. Nine committee members voted in favor of the bill and five against.

State Sen. Heather Steans, the bill's sponsor, told the committee Tuesday, "Same-sex couples want to marry for the same reasons we all do. Civil unions have created a second-class status," according to Chicago Pride.

 

The Skokie Police Department has been working around the clock with Chicago and other area detectives since Monday afternoon. The reason: The department believes it's nabbed a serial hair salon bandit, who it says is responsible for 15 armed robberies that occurred in eight different municipalities, spanning two counties.

An annual study of national driving patterns shows that Americans spent 5.5 billion additional hours sitting in traffic in 2011.

The Texas A&M Transportation Institute released a report Tuesday that found Americans are adapting to road congestion by allowing, on average, an hour to make a trip that would take 20 minutes without traffic. The Urban Mobility Report also says clogged roads cost Americans $121 billion in time and fuel in 2011. The study determined that Chicago ranked 8^th on the list of most congested cities. The most congested city is Washington D.C. 

Nine companies are reportedly preparing for nearly 1,200 layoffs throughout Illinois, including Sun-Times Media, Walgreen's and Kmart, according to Crain's Chicago Business. 

Sun-Times Media, publisher of the Chicago Sun-Times and other suburban papers, warns that 274 jobs in Glenview, Tinley Park and Aurora could be eliminated due to consolidation. 

Northwestern University Athletics and the Chicago Cubs announced on Tuesday a multi-year event and reciprocal marketing partnership featuring Wildcats athletic programs at Wrigley Field, including baseball, lacrosse and five Wildcats football games. 

The dates for the five Wildcats football games are pending due to the scheduling of the Wrigley Field restoration project. Details on game dates, opponents and ticket information will also be provided at a later date.

It’s all a part of a massive shake-up under way in Wrigleyville. Along with the $300 million renovation project of the ballpark, the Cubs are vying for more night games at Wrigley, as well as games later on Friday afternoons and Saturday nights. 

 

Living in a home fit for a king is one thing, but what about living in a home fit for a king—of beers?

 The "Pabst Mansion," a gorgeous, eight-bedroom Glencoe, home recently hit the market for $6.95 million. The estate was built in 1936 for the late Pabst Brewing Co. Chairman and one-time President Harris Perlstein. 

Architect William Pereira designed the home for Perlstein, who merged his Chicago company, Premier Malt, with Milwaukee’s Pabst brewing company the year before Prohibition was repealed, according to Chicago magazine. Pereira, himself a Chicago native, went on the design buildings like San Francisco's iconic Transamerica Pyramid Center.

  Reported by Patch 41 minutes ago.

Patch Beachwood, OH --

Submitted by BeachwoodBison.org:

Beachwood juniors *Sammy Gross* and *Ryan Harris* won individual titles in Saturday’s Chagrin Valley Conference wrestling tournament at Kenston High School. Beachwood finished in third place, behind back-to-back league champion Perry and Kenston.

While Gross and Harris were favored to win their respective weight classes, other Bison wrestlers raised the bar in the league tournament.

Senior *Alex Angersola* finished second at 145, juniors *Trevor Sanshuck* (170) and *Paul Flowers* (182) both took second and junior*Andrew Kitay* finished sixth at 152.

“I’m starting to get high expectations, because my guys have lost some matches this year against guys I think they should have beaten where I’d come back and tell them they’re better than that,” said Beachwood head coach *Dugan Bentley*. “We’ve got to start beating guys like that and that’s what they did today. We coach them pretty well and they’re in pretty good shape. I think until today they’ve been kind of underachieving.”

Gross, the 120-pound champion, won his first league championship after finishing second in 2012 and third in 2011. He did it by beating a familiar foe, Berkshire’s *T.J. Malkus*, a state qualifier last season.

The two have had some close matches in the past but in Saturday’s championship bout Gross cruised to a 20-7 major decision.

“It feels pretty good (to win his first league championship),” Gross said. “I wanted to go out and dominate and I think for the most part that’s what I did.”

Harris, who defended his title won last season, appeared in the finals for the third straight season. He finished second in 2011.

The 160-pound weight class championship match featured two defending champions and Harris and Perry’s*Alec Schenk*, who won at 145 last season. Harris dominated the match to win with a 12-3 major decision.

“I think Ryan took care of business tonight,” Bentley said. The kid kept coming and usually if a kid keeps coming, Ryan keeps scoring and that’s what he did.”

Angersola advanced to the 145-pound finals, where he dropped a 5-3 decision to Perry’s *Drew Jones*, the 2012 152-pound champion.

“There was a lot he could have done differently and he gave up a reversal at the end of the first period and that really put us in a bad situation,” Bentley said. ‘All in all, it was a good learning process for him.”

Kitay reached the 152-pound semifinals then dropped his next three matches, including a 4-3 decision to West Geauga’s *Rob Alcorn* in the consolation semifinals. He settled for sixth place.

Bentley sees a lot to like in Kitay’s development this season and with continued improvement he’s confident the junior could make a post-season run.

“It’s a little frustrating when Andrew puts himself in really awkward positions,” Bentley said. “He has some easy scoring situations he doesn’t identify but he’s still learning.”

Sanshuck recorded two pins and a 10-6 win over West Geauga’s *David Eippert*, fourth a season ago, to advance to the 170-pound final. He lost to defending champion *Ryan Sill* of Perry, 3-1.

“He lost trying to make something happen and I’m OK with that,” Bentley said.

The match was scoreless after the first period and Sill took at 1-0 lead in the second. A Sanshuck escape tied it in the third but Sill countered a Sanshuck takedown attempt to win the match.

Flowers knocked off top-seeded *Brian McNamara* of Aurora in the semifinals to reach the 182-pound championship bout but couldn’t finish off his tournament run with a title.

“He had a really good first period but things fell apart for him,” Bentley said. “Being there was good for him. He’ll be fine; he just has to keep improving.”

Overall, Bentley was pleased with his team’s performance in its last big event before the post-season begins at the Beachwood Division III sectional tournament on Feb. 15-16.

“We’ve identified the problems in our losses and we’ll week working at improving,” he said. “We’ll keep working to get them to the next level.”

*Results:*

1.Perry 253.5 2.Kenston 159.5 3.Beachwood 147 4.Aurora 121.5 5.Cuyahoga Hts 121.5 6.Kirtland 119 7.Cardinal 106 8.Harvey 100.5 9.Independence 95 10.Berkshire 84 11.Hawken 81 12.West Geauga 61 13.Orange 42 14.Newbury 27 15.Wickliffe 22 16.Chagrin Falls 6 17.Richmond Hts 6

*106* 1st Demarco (Hawken) dec Orr (Cuy Hts) 7-3; 3rd Neikirk(Cardinal) dec Whitelaw(Aurora) 6-5; 5th Toth (Perry) & Georgian (Kenston).

*113* 1st Dees(Perry) Fall Mast (Cardinal) 1:48; 3rd Pucci(Cuy Hts) MDec Mroczynski(Independ) 15-2; 5th Mcclain(Harvey) TF Herbruck(Kenston)18-3.

*120* 1st Gross(Beachwood) MD Malkus(Berkshire)20-7; 3rd Petersen(Aurora) Dec Spino(Independ)10-6;5th Calvert(Kirtland) & Kadas(Cuy Hts).

*126 *1st Francis(Kirtland) Dec Frye(Cuy Hts)2-1; 3rd Peters(Cardinal) Dec Venturini(West Geauga)2-1; 5th Gramberg (Perry) & Regalbutto (Orange).

*132 *1st Gessic(Perry) MDec Johns(Cardinal)14-1; 3rd Kirsh(Orange) Fall Nowak(Newbury) 4:20; 5th Driscoll (Aurora) & McManus (Cuy Hts).

*138* 1st Davidson(Kirtland) by DQ Charvat(Berkshire); 3rd Walden (Beachwood) & Montague (Independ); 5th Bauer (kenston) & Blogna (Cuy Hts).

*145* 1st Jones(Perry) Dec Angersola(Beachwood)5-3; 3rd Evans (Aurora) & Disanto (kentson) 5th Fomaro 9west Geauga) & Kaser (Berkshire).

*152 *1st King(Hawken) Dec Turner(Harvey) 4-3; 3rd Alcorn (west Geauga) & Mrosko (Perry); 5th Gambatese(Kenston) MD Kitay(Beachwood)10-1.

*160* 1st Harris(Beachwood) MD Schenk(Perry) 12-3; 3rd Sealey(Harvey) Dec Miller(Cardinal) 4-1; 5th Sia (Independ) & Ostoyic (Kenston).

*170* 1st Sill(Perry) Dec Sanshuck(Beachwood) 3-1; 3rd Eippert(West Geauga) Fall Kondik(Kenston) 4:15; 5th Guajardo(Harvey) Dec Christian(Hawken) 5-3.

*182* 1st Simon(Berkshire) MD Flowers(Beachwood) 10-0; 3rd Cales(Perry) Dec Mcnamara(Aurora) 6-4; 5th Frygier(Kenston) Dec Grice(Harvey) 6-0.

*195* 1st Brettrager(Kirtland) Fall Stotter(Hawken) 3:09; 3rd Lewis(Kenston) Fall Suchovsky(Aurora) 2:26; 5th Haavisto(Wickliffe MD Jones(Cuy Hts) 12-4.

*220* 1st Nichols(Perry) Fall Scotton(Independ) 2:52; 3rd Carrasco(Aurora) MD Williams(Harvey) 11-3; 5th Yoho(Kenston) Fall Qualls(Newbury).

*285 *1st Miller(Perry) TF Lewis(Kenston) 18-3; 3rd Burger(Aurora) Dec Deely(Independ) 2-0; 5th Diemer(Kirtland) Fall Rice(Harvey). Reported by Patch 4 days ago.

Aurora Health Care will build out its Grafton hospital by adding 18 inpatient beds. The Grafton hospital, which opened in November 2010, was designed to accommodate expansion “if patient volumes warranted,” Brad Hahn, executive vice president with Milwaukee-based Aurora said Monday in an email to employees. “Now that the hospital has been operating at full capacity for some time — steadily and even sooner than anticipated — we know the time is right for expansion,” Hahn said. Aurora… Reported by bizjournals 4 days ago.

For anyone who watched last week's PBS Frontline documentary, The Untouchables, it's pretty clear that the reason that we have not seen one single banker brought to justice for criminal wrongdoing in the mortgage crisis is because the Department of Justice has had the wrong Sheriff in charge. Lanny Breuer, the Assistant Attorney General in charge of financial prosecutions, has consistently shot down virtually all potential fraud cases, explaining that they were simply too hard to prosecute.

His attitude toward the banks was shockingly protective and certainly not prosecutorial. In fact, Breuer was quoted during a speech at the New York Bar Association last fall saying that he was "losing sleep at night over worrying about what a lawsuit might result in at a large financial institution." In spite of mountains of evidence from whistleblowers and private firms, the Department of Justice has not filed any criminal charges against banks related to the mortgage crisis.

Thankfully, as President Obama begins his second term, we may have a second chance at justice. Last week news leaked that Lanny Breuer is stepping down, after nearly four wasted years at DOJ. Now with Mary Jo White at the head of the SEC and Richard Cordray at the Consumer Protection Bureau, there's a chance that winds of change might finally be blowing and the executives who knowingly sold bad mortgages to reap huge profits while bankrupting our economy may finally be held to account. But it's not a given, and the time for bringing these banks to justice for their crime is quickly running out, since the statute of limitations for criminal prosecutions in fraud cases is, in most cases, five years.

Let's face facts: We know that Wall Street is extremely powerful, if for no other reason than the fact that the government seems afraid to hold them accountable. Imagine if this level of scandal had happened in any other industry. For example, let's say that a car company knowingly sold millions of cars with faulty brake systems. Through emails, phone records, and maybe a whistleblower -- this information comes to light after car owners die in accidents, or were otherwise maimed and injured. Most reasonable people would agree that the best way to respond would be to force the automaker into a mandatory recall to fix the brakes on all the cars, compensate the victims, and, to the degree that the manufacturers knew this was a problem, prosecute them to the full extent of the law in criminal and civil court. This is not what has happened to banks who knowingly sold bad mortgages to people who could not afford them, then sold them off to investors in the market bundled into AAA rated securities.

So, why is criminal court off the table in the financial sector? Well, maybe the harm is not as severe, one might argue. But that's simply not true. In fact, in some cases the trauma and harm caused by foreclosure can be more devastating and far reaching in a community than any car accident.

Take Ana and Jose Mendez from Springfield, Mass. After they fell behind in their mortgage payments due to a loss of income, they did what millions of families were told to do -- they contacted the bank. Aurora Bank offered them a temporary trial modification, like millions of other families. The Mendez family obliged and paid for six consecutive months. At the end of the trial period, Aurora Bank refused a permanent modification and offered another trial. The family obliged again and paid for six more months at a higher price -- hoping that this time they would get a permanent modification. At the end of that period, Aurora again refused a permanent modification and offered one last six-month trial modification. The Mendez family paid those six months. At the end of 18 months of trial payments, Aurora Bank refused to permanently modify the loan and foreclosed.

Jose Mendez expressed his frustration to a local CBS News Affiliate in Springfield, stating, "I don't understand the logic that the banks use to evict our communities, all these buildings stay empty without any benefit to our communities."

The Mendez family struggle is ongoing. Aurora Bank FSB, which is the legacy of the now defunct Lehman Brothers refused to accept the Mendez family's offer to pay rent and is now no longer negotiating in good faith. Aurora Bank has chosen to proceed with eviction. The Mendez family is willing to move if Aurora Bank can find a buyer who signs an affidavit to move into the home, but the bank would rather leave the home vacant than work with the family.

This is just one example of the thousands of families whose lives have been upended without any recourse or justice. If anyone else stole rent for a home from a family, we would haul them into court. Who will stand up for the Mendez family in court?

That's why it is so critical that bankers who committed criminal fraud be held to account for their crimes. Any criminal justice expert will tell you that if there is no punishment, there is no deterrent. Bankers need a deterrent to prevent them from cooking up the next crisis that will bankrupt America.

The Campaign for a Fair Settlement and Corporate Action Network are working to shine a spotlight on stories of those whose lives were ruined by Wall Street crime during the first 100 days of President Obama's second term. We're telling these stories because we must have justice. With the statute of limitations running out, it's imperative that the administration makes it a priority to replace Lanny Breuer with someone who will actually prosecute the banks and bankers who wreaked havoc on so many lives.

The paltry settlements that homeowners will receive based on the decisions now being made in the civil court will not make those homeowners whole. Meanwhile, banks and the executives who run them got huge government bailouts. There's a reason why petty criminals are forced to pay restitution, and the reason is simple justice. Bankers are no different from the rest of us. In his radio address on the nominations of Mary Jo White and Richard Cordray, President Obama stated that "we [...] need cops on the beat to enforce the law." Campaign for a Fair Settlement, Corporate Action Network, and homeowners in foreclosure will spend what's left of these first 100 days making sure President Obama gets someone at the Justice Department who will do just that. Reported by Huffington Post 3 days ago.

Navy Vice Admiral Michelle Howard, a 1978 graduate of Gateway High School in Aurora, was honored during an NBC television special Friday night, "The 44th Annual NAACP Image Awards." Reported by Denver Post 3 days ago.

Acclaimed director Miguel Gomes returns with a sumptuous, eccentric two-part tale centered on Aurora, shown first as an impulsive, cantankerous elderly woman in present-day Lisbon. When Aurora is hospitalized, she sends her neighbor, Pilar, to pass... Reported by Rotten Tomatoes 3 days ago.

When Abigail Villalpando didn’t show up for her shift at Denny’s last Thursday, her co-workers, friends and family knew something was wrong. Villalpando, 18, a senior at West Aurora High School, had worked as a server at the Aurora restaurant for two years. Ben Richter, the restaurant’s general manager, said she was well-liked by co-workers and customers. “She had several regular customers,” he said. “They liked her because she had that bubbly kind of personality.” A co-worker called her home, and her family reported her missing. On Saturday morning, Villalpando’s badly burned body was in a wooded area in Montgomery, … Reported by Chicago S-T 3 days ago.

Patch Lemont, IL --

Editor’s note: The information below is from a press release issued by Lemont High School Feb. 5, replacing the original version published in Patch last week. District officials said some minor recalculations had to be done with one of the classes, affecting the honor rolls. The updated version follows.

Lemont High School tabbed more than 1,000 students with either Honor Roll or High Honor Roll distinction for the first semester of the 2012-13 school year. That represents the largest number of students the school has ever named to its honor rolls in one semester.

In order to achieve High Honor Roll status, students must be enrolled in six or more classes and achieve a grade point average of 3.5 or better. Honor Roll students must achieve a grade point average between 3.00 and 3.49. Any student who earns a grade lower  than a “C” is not eligible to be honored on either list.

The list of honorees is as follows:

*2012-13 School Year - Semester 1*

*HIGH HONOR ROLL*

*Seniors - Class of 2013*

Samuel Abboud, Nicholas Aguinaga, Esperanza Aleman, Violet Arnold, Joseph Averion-Puttrich, Salvatore Baldassano, Kathryn Balnius, Elizabeth Bartosik, Paul Bellisario, Lillian Berta, Nicholas Bonner, Jack Bort, Justin Brady, Alexander Broskovetz, Zachary Brosseau, Maggie Brown, Melissa Bruckner, Joseph Bruno, Shannon Burke, Alexandra Burton, Brittany Cantarino, Rita Cardella, Sarah Cash, Raymond Cepele, Alyssa Cinatl, Jonathon Clark, Kelly Collins, Nora Collins, Nadya Cortes, Ewa Cygan, Amber D’Andrea, Sara Diaz, John Dillenburg, Bryan Dirst, Nicholas Dory, Vincent Dory, Kyle Dougherty, Kevin Dowiarz, Christopher Dowling, Samantha Drafke, Isabel Dziak, Amanda Dziallo, Imer Elezovski, Toby Elgin, Dianne Etrata, Nicole Fardig, Jordan Fiedler,   Monika Filar, Anne Finnelly, Molly Finnelly, Kevin Fischer, Alyssa Fitzgerald, Tricia Flanagan, Scott Franklin, Beau Freebeck, Helena Fugiel, Ryan Gaffney, Kimberly Gannon, Connor Ganzer, Thomas Gasienica, Paige Gawrys, Jordan Gembara, Marissa Gonzales, Karolina Goryl, Thomas Griffin, Aurita Gudauskaite, Stefanie Guerrero, Jessica Halper, Kyle Hamann, Laura Harding, Emmanuel Hernandez-Rocha, Mark Hill, Brent Husa, Aleksandra Ivanovska, Alyssa Jaje, Megan Janas, Dawid Janik, Brian Jasso, Carly Jaworski, Natalia Jezyk, Adrian Kalata, Matthew Kaminski, Rachel Karpiesiuk, Victoria Kedaitis, Chandler Kelly, Alexandra Kirkolis, Angelica Kociolek, Katelyn Koehler, Amanda Kolar, Aaron Korte, Szymon Koszarek, Nicole Krol, Michael Krueger, Szymon Krzeptowski-Mucha, Ryan Leadley, Megan Litoborski, Maria Lobas, Maha Longi, Marzena Lukaszczyk, Allison Lukhard, James Lulek, Matthew Luzzo, Michael Macek, Michael Madsen, Michael Malloy, Shravan Manvar, Marisa Mars, Elizabeth Martinez, Sam Marzo, Amanda Mathews, Matthew Mathius, Conor Matthews, Scott Matulik, Wendy Mazur, Nicholas McCoy, Delaney McGuire, Nicole McKevitt, Lisa Melville, Elizabeth Melvin, Alexa Mlynarczyk, Nina Moeller, Alyssa Molaro, Kelsey Motto, Christian Mrowca, Dean Darius Nazario, Kayla Neetz, Connor O’Brien, Claire O’Leary, David O’Sullivan, Aaron Oldanie, Brianna Olin, Katrina Olson, Joanna Orszulak, Jarrett Oswald, Natalia Pacura, Joseph Paloian, Ethan Parafink, Robert Parson, Grace Pender, John Podczerwinski, Tamera Pratt, Andrew Putna, Katherine Putna, Michael Puzynski, Paul Rachwalski, Bart Rafacz, Sarah Reaves, Zachary Reitz, Kiley Rendak, Angela Ridgway, Mackenzie Rohrer, Michael Romanini, Amanda Ruban, Joseph Ruggiero, Erick Rydberg, Diego Sanchez, Megan Santiago, Bryan Shamasko, Tatyana Sheppard, Edward Sinovich, James Slesur, Jacob Smagacz, Rachael Smith, Richard Sniegowski, Sarah Sorich, David Spinelli, Justin Stanwyck, Lynn Stanwyck, Cesli Steck, Raymond Stieber, Reilley Sullivan, Kayla Svitak, Brett Szulc, Aubree Tally, Zachary Taylor, Marc Tokarski, Connor Tomaka, Courtney Toth, Daniel Totura, Carly Tucker, Zanas Tumasonis, Shannon Turley, Stephen Tuscher, Aleksandar Vasic, Chloe Vavra, Sonia Vavra, Abriana Vesconte, Tadas Vildziunas, Edwin Villagomez, Matthew Vitt, Keaton Wall, Katherine Washagan, Nicholas Westerhausen, Allison White, Jessica Winston, Alex Wontorczyk, Anna Wood, Victoria Zajec, Greta Zilyte, Samantha Zoltek and Rayan Zubi.

*Juniors - Class of 2014*

Kimberly Aguirre, Alexandra Albrecht, Migle Alinkeviciute, Anne Marie Alwan, Sara Andreas, Justin Ankus, Ciara Athy, Michelle Awad, Rebeca Bagdocimo, Ann Baillie, Robert Baker, Nicole Balinski, Atri Bathani, Jade Beadle, Erin Bendle, Viktorija Bieksaite, Ryan Bishop, Natalie Bort, Sydney Bozich, Alexander Bronner, Reilly Burns, Paige Buschman, Rachel Cammiso, Jimmy Chakkalakel, Andrew Chialdikas, Nicholas Ciofalo, Maura Conrad, Lanie Coules, Claire Cronin, Bryan Cummings, Juan Leyno Dasco, Peter DeBiase, Lauren DeCesare, Monique Devitt, Dana Devlin, James Divis, John Dohse, Duohan Dominiak, Daniel Dowiarz, Emily Durham, Jonathan Dzielski, Austin Economos, Rebecca Eichwedel, Margaret Ernst, Caitlin Fabro, Kelly Ferguson, Dafne Flores Medina, Ryan Folliard, Elizabeth Forzley, Kelly Fritz, Taylor Gabouer, Matthew Gagen, Madeline Garvey, Jesse Garza, Peter Gianakakis, Amanda Gieseler, Luke Graczyk, Benjamin Groselak, Matthew Grzeda, Matthew Hackiewicz, Rachel Hall, Christopher Hanneman, Jarrod Hanson, Andrew Hayes, Lucas Heatherington, Jennifer Hennig, John Hopkins, Emma Houran, Cara Howell, Amanda Huegelmann, Amy Hughes, Aurimas Jackunas, Kristen Janociak, Sylwia Jazowski, Kimberly Jerantowski, Diana Juzenaite, MacKenzie Kallemeyn, Apolonia Kasprzyk, Katherine Klein, Kaila Korosec, Edward Kostrubala, Barbara Koszarek, Jennifer Krakowski, Andrew Kramer, Zachary Krepps, Luke Krisciunas, Kristyn Krueger, Jessica Krzemien, Rafal Krzysiak, Erika Kubowitsch, Madelyn Kulis, Grace Kunkel, Michael Kurasz, Ryan Lambe, Alexandra Laniewski, Jacob Latz, Richard LeBeck, Kathleen Leffler, Ingrid Lejins, Jacob Lepczynski, Gianna Letizia, Cassandra Lillwitz, Kevin Lindgren, Lauren Lumsden, Ryan Luzzo, Katherine Lynch, Lauriel Machowski-Lucka, Sarah Malley, Michaela Marino, Jeffrey Mason, Lucas Mathias, Alexandria McAdam, Clint McAllister, Clare McClafferty, Molly McNeeley, Madeleine McPartland, Connor Melvin, Morgan Micetich, Andrew Miller, Rachel Miller, Alyssa Minnicino, Christian Moy, Miranda Neumann, Phoebe Newton, Katherine O’Connor, Edward O’Malley, MacKenzie O’Shea, Joseph Padilla, Rachel Papiernik, Michael Papierski, Kristen Parham, Rebecca Peraino, Damian Ponicki, Thomas Powers, Liam Purtle, Lauren Pustulka, Zofia Remiasz, Shannon Rhodes, Robert Rigler, Margaret Rogers, Julia Rowinski, Kieran Ruane, Mary Sahs, Thomas Sahs, Elaine Saucedo, Carli Serpe, Monika Siliunas, John Simadis, Charles Stahurski, Adam Strube, Jonathan Stutz, Sean Sublette, Annie Svitak, Austin Swanson, Kelsey Tate, Jake Terrazas, Alexandra Tonelli, Kevin Trojak, Amanda Tulipano, Gianna Turek, Robert Turza, David Tuscher, Brett Twohill, Sara Van Hecke, Mary Vermejan, Jenna Walaszek, Kimberly Walsh, Daniel Winters, Danielle Wohead, Lauren Young, Anna Zechel, Kali Zeglen, Joseph Ziebell, Alexandra Ziogas and Phillip Zukowski.

*Sophomores - Class of 2015*

Nicholas Abboud, Mario Aguinaga, Kathryn Atherton, Simon Batistich, John Bermele, Jessica Bonner, Delaney Bozich, Jonathon Brabec, Conner Brandt, James Brennan, Savannah Brija, Steven Brija, Nathan Broskovetz, Margo Burke, Nathaniel Burner, Tess Cannon, Maria Castrogiovanni, Annamarie Chefalo, Danae Choquette, Blair Cremerius, Staci Dabrowski, Rogelio DelaTorre, Jacquelyn Desmond, Christina Dewar, Michael Diorio, Adrianna Diviero, Owen Doherty, Rebecca Dowling, Jorie Dybcio, Annamae Dziallo, Stephanie Eby, Katherine Faron, Kelly Filer, Karina Folliard, Bailey Fox, Radomir Fugiel, Evan Ganzer, Selena Gomez, Alison Graczyk, Michael Gralla, Krystina Gutierrez, Emily Halper, Alexis Hanneman, Cheyenne Henry, Alejandro Herrera, Zachariah Hetrick, Rachael Hill, Ian Hinchley, Kyla Hinds, Mairead Hogan, Patrick Hogan, Christine Hunter, Lisa Jaworski, Beth Jezyk, Monica Justice, Meghan Kaminski, Daniel King, Angelika Kluska, Connor Koehler, Kyle Kowalski, Hunter Laduke, Elly Lambert, Jack Lambert, Nicholas Lambrakis, Elaina Latz, Gabriella Laurel, Brian Leahy, Brennen Legan, Holly Lemming, Annette Lesnicki, Gary Lin, Brian Luciano, DeAna Machowski-Lucka, David Marchwiany, Michael Martinez, Lauren May, Matthew McFarland, Lauren McKevitt, Tania Mejia, Alex Micco, Emily Micklin, Meda Mikalauskas, Brittney Mikrut, Shae Millinowisch, Monique Mitrani, Bridget Mizener, Maura Monahan, Christine Moody, Kevin Murphy, Niveen Nabulsi, Jacob Nelson, Ryan Nilles, Emma O’Leary, Brianna Olkiewicz, Emily Olson, Matthew Orednick, Julia Pachla, Jacob Pack, Bansi Padalia, Vincent Parise, Joseph Pavlovic, Michael Pender, Frank Pignone, Michal Pirszel, Andrew Podczerwinski, Jenna Polk, Margaret Poltorak, Sabina Ponicki, Jake Rangel, Michael Reaves, Audrey Rex, Hailey Richa, Thomas Rimbo, Autumn Rita, Abigail Roselieb, Benjamin Sabourin, Emily Saldana, Katheryn Santiago, Tyler Schoell, Natalie Schwem, Joseph Sciacca, Rebecca Shepro, Allison Sipek, Lauren Slivinski, Melissa Smith, Jessica Soljacich, Jessica Spinelli, Madeline Stapleton, Alyssa Stecyna, Alexander Stokes, Jocelyn Stronach, Haley Sullivan, Natasha Svabek, Nathaniel Thomas, William Totura, Andrew Trick, Bridget Tsambikou, Kyra Udziela, Rachel Uher, Nicholas Urban, Edgar Vallejo, Michael Vitt, Ashlee Walik, Samantha Walus, Daniel Wang, Kristin Washagan, Robert Wehn, Eric Whatley, Drake White, Nicholas Wieczorek, Alyssa Wood, Lindsay Wright, Rebecca Zagorski, Emily Zaremski and Ariana Ziogas.

*Freshmen - Class of 2016*

Samantha Albrecht, Cheyenne Alvarez, Matthew Anderson, Maliha Asadullah, Joshua John Babista, Kala Badillo, Spenser Bailey, Amanda Baker, Nicole
Bakovich, John Bellisario, Anthony Belsan, Taylor Biggs, Juliana Bobak, Daniel Borsilli, Samantha Bradley, Victoria Brier, Rachel Brunory, Claire Burner, Kimberly Burns, Marisa Burton, Eristida Butkeviciute, Taylor Campos, Charlie Cannon, Misbah Chagpar, Jakub Cikowski, Hope Conway, Madeline Coules, Timothy Cruz, Paulina Cygan, Eric Deubler, Jessica Devitt, Lauren Devlin, Colleen DeVries, Joshua Diaz, Bridget Doherty, Brian Dohse, Anthony Dominic, Mallory Douglass, Allison Dowling, Marissa Dyer, Allison Egan, Anne Ernst, Jaron Fay, Jeremy Fejedelem, Nicholas Feltz, Maciej Filar, Jeffrey Franklin, Hannah Freese, Claire Gagen, Claudia Galica, Daniel Garczek, Jacob Gasienica, Kevin Gaszman, Zachary Gembara, Dylan Glosa, Maddison Gould, Mackenna Grelck, Elizabeth Gurosh, Jason Hackiewicz, Barry Haggerty, Kayla Halter, Leah Hanson, Dennis Healy, Melissa Herrera, Carly Holzner, Chase Huron, Kayla Irwin, Thomas Jachec, Ankit Joshi, Samantha Jurgeto, Dana Kahle, Colette Kelly, Gina Klaff, Natalie Knoepfle, Jessica Kobylak, Christopher Konicki, Zachary Konieczka, Natalia Kowalczyk, Nicholas Kowalczyk, Jakub Krzeptowski-Mucha, Addison Kwasigroch,
Gian Angelo Lacanlale, Emily Lane, Anastasia Laniewski, Matthew Lassak, Kevin Leahy, Alexander LeBeck, Skylar Lefevers, Jacob Leibfritz, Stephanie Lesnicki, Nancy Lin, Grace Lochen, Marcin Lukanus, Hannah Lukhard, Anna Macek, Richard Machaj, Kevin Malesza, Kristen Malloy, Riley Maloney, Chloe Mars, Marisa Marseille, Alexandra Marusarz, Jack Marzo, Ashley Mathews, Melissa Mathius, Ace Matthews, Olivia Matthews, Morgan Matulik, Nicholas Matulik, Lindsey Mazur, Brian McClafferty, Shawn McPartland, Sydney Medema, Keara Meehan, Anuj Mehta, Joseph Mendoza, Christian Miklos, Jenna Molaro, Alexis Mufarreh, Paige Murphy, Alexandar Musarevski, Vanessa Muscolino, Ashley Mussallem, Kelly Nolan, Julissa Nunez, Casey O’Brien, Sarah O’Donnell, Natalie O’Shea, Hanah Olson, Sarah Oprzedek, Katelyn Papierski, John Parise, Deep Patel, Kennedy Pawell, Daniel Peterson, Michael Petruzzi, John Piazza, Alaina Pizzoferrato, Aldo Pizzoferrato, John Polk, Jonathan Popper, Olivia Pustulka, Anna Quade, Adam Quinlan, Jakob Rabianski, Jaclyn Rachanski, Clare Rachwalski, Kristin Ramski, Jacob Reitz, Matthew Retzke, Alejandra Rodriguez Aguero, Anna Roenitz, Danielle Rome, Amanda Sahs, Veronica Salazar, Taylor Sambucci, Stephen Santucci, Kayla Scheel, Gregory Schmidt, Lauren Selfridge, Paul Sikora, Nicholas
Simadis, Valdas Simanauskas, Samantha Siple, Lauren Siston, Aurora Slivinski, Martynas Snarskis, Michael Spell, Nicolet Svabek, Jeremy Svoboda, Tyler Swann, Chloe Szot, Raychel Techman, Benjamin Tholotowsky, Christopher Thompson, Dana Threet, Austin Tittle, Dominic Tonelli, Kevin Troy, Alexa Turner, Matthew Uthupan, Madeline Vermejan, Byron Villagomez, Olivia Whittingham, Nicholas Wisz, Chloe Wojtowicz, Andrew Wood, Eugene Yoon, Sebastian Zagorski, Isaac Ziebell and Raquel Zvirbulis.

*HONOR ROLL*

*Seniors - Class of 2013*

Antonia Aguilera, Christopher Amico, Eduardo Araujo, John Bakovich, Mitchell Balek, Sarah Ballard, Antonio Barauskas, Michelle Bobak, Kayley Bogdan, Rachel Bogo, Carmen Burke, Cody Caballero, Wade Carroll, Erik Cervantes, Jenna Chapman, Mary Clancy, Joseph Cokinis, Erin Costello, Paige Cremerius, Michael Daly, Michael Devitt, Erik Erdmier, Israel Flores, Chanelle Fortier, Kayla Grajeda, Paul Grossi, Nicholas Harbut, William Hayes, Ivan Holguin, Jonathan Ignarski, Savannah Kloth, Clayton Kobilca, Rebecca Kopping, Gina Koziel, Mark Krawiec, Robert Kwasneski, Amanda Lassak, Jacob Lemming, Michael Luciano, Rachel Margalus, Jessica Martinez, Brandon McAdam, Justin Mendoza, Bradley Menzyk, Samantha Moffett, Nicholas Mui, Robert Nelson, Joshua O’Dowd, Kylie Obbish, Sarah Orlic, Ethan Pocic, Ross Purpura, Hannah Richa, Jacob Ricks, Gregory Rizzo, Nicholas Runnfeldt, David Schmeltzer, Tanya Schmitz, Kenneth Schumacher, Sarah Semetulskis, Barbara Skubisz, Stephen Tate, John Tisza, Erika Truschke, Marcus Westbrook, Daniel Wilk, Danielle Wodka and Sandra Wozniak.

*Juniors - Class of 2014*

Michael Abruzzi, Monica Aguinaga, Abigail Baffoe, Nikolas Borsilli, Katelin Bryant, Anne Callaghan, Nicolle Cekal, Kelsey Cetnarowski, Ethan Chester, Beata Czerwien, David Czupta, Stephanie Drozda, Sean Dutton, Thomas Gavrick, Lisa Gawron, Samira Gazaferi, Brett Gebka, Regina Giliano, Christina Grossi, Ashley Haras, Hailey Hart, Luke Hensley, Connor Holzner, Klaudijus Juska, Alexander Keating, Chase Kobilca, Rebecka Konicki, Gregory Koski, Lauren Kowalczyk, Kyle Kozlowski, Troy Kucharski, James Lamping, Sarah Lillwitz, Daniel Loris, Bridget Lynn, William Millard, Tess Moeller, Tristan Morlock, Salvatore Moskos, Porter Moural, Andrew Mrozek, Antonio Munoz, Austin Parduhn, Katelyn Peterson, Connor Pratt, Samantha Re, Alexa Rios, Krzysztof Rychtarczyk, Steven Schwartz, Vincenzo Sciacca, Christopher Serpe, Brittany Smith, Sean Smollen, David Tarter, Zachary Thenhaus, Bethany Timm, Eric Tucker, Steven Ustupski, Auguste Vildziunaite, Frank Vrchota, Karolina Walczak, Adam Wallace, Luke Wallenberg, Kayla Walter, Michael Wisz and Matthew Wojtanek.

*Sophomores - Class of 2015*

Kelsey Berner, Grace Berta, Thomas Bogdan, John Boyle, Aleisse Buck, Matthew Chraca, Brielle Christopherson, Michael Connolly, Nathan Crockett, Nora Cummins, Nicholas DeArcangelis, Hannah DeVries, Brendan Dougherty, Mary Durkin, Jeremy Dziubasik, Jacob Etzkorn, Santino Fortino, Daniel Frangella, Dimitri Giatras, Ryan Glynn, Alec Hiller, Jasmine Hornik, Alondra Ibarra, Abigail Ivancicts, Jordan Jana, Luke Jasper, Zachary Kelly, Stephanie Kempski, Joseph Kennedy, Monika Keturakyte, Easton Kral, Samantha Krol, Noah Kubowitsch, Reann Kwasneski, Dana LoCascio, Nina LoCascio, Katherine Lynch, Sean Lynch, Kevin Madera, Nicole Markley, Stephanie Markley, Christine Martinez, Fernando Martinez, Rafael Marzo, Kathryn Mathias, Paige Matijevich, Aleksandra Mihailovic, Ashlee Mitoraj, Luke Munoz, Spencer Nelson, Danny Newcomb, Rory Nicholson, Emira Nurceska, Matthew O’Sullivan, Daniel Orednick, Jessica Orlic, Nicholas Ostendorf, Nathan Palermo, Jeremy Pellegrine, Vanessa Pustulka, Laura Ringo, Jordan Ruban, Claire Rzonca, Victoria Salazar, Jacob Scarlati, Nicole Scholle, John Sewers, Ryan Shereck, Kayla Simone, Samuel Smith, Eric Soto, Korrine
Stromidlo, Carly Styka, Lauren Szoldatits, David Szperlak, Lukas Tamonis, Ann Ternes, Joshua Traynere, Teodor Trifunovski, Dariusz Ustupski, Jack Valone, Gianna VanDeVeer and Mauricio Zavala.

*Freshmen - Class of 2016*

Christian Aiello, Abigail Sue Ang, Aaron Avalos, Marlena Baldyga, Julia Balnius, Justin Bell, Nolan Bell, Kurt Bernabei, Zachary Bertram, Connor Brady, Sara Brenza, Blake Bromberek, John Buday, Luis Cantu, Victoria Carroll, Erin Cliff, Reanna Comiso, Rory Cunningham, Robert Davis, Joy Drassler, Declan Fase, Zachary Filippelli, Brook Finger, Cassidy Finn, Brooke Gabor, Brian Gonzalez, Andrea Gory, Samuel Grasman, Julia Grendzinski, Jeffery Halicky, Lisa Hughes, Carli Jasper, Jessica Kluska, Jonathan Knutte, Damien Koziel, Dajon Krakar, Mark Krisciunas, Dylan Lambe, John Lejins, Isabel Lietza, Stephanie Liptak, Jennifer Lorenz, Andy Maka, Alyssa Martinez, Jessica Mathias, Brenden McNicholas, Noah Morkeliunas, Maxwell Nelson, Patrycja Nicos, Brenna Passarelli, Christopher Pavlopoulos, Danielle Pehr, Paola Prado, Michael Prasauskas, Izabele Pupelyte, Stefan Puskar, Janina Righetti, Claire Ronspies, Talia Santangelo, Angela Sarvey, Margo Saucedo, Anna Smagacz, Natalia Sobczak, Kaitlyn Spadoni, Keshon Steele, Lukasz Sulka, Kyle Swalec, Jacob Szeliga, Hallie Taylor, Sarah Tholotowsky, Amanda Timm, Taylor Toth, Tyler Vileikis, Francesca Vitale, Gabriella Voltarel, Jacob Wehn, Logan Williams, Karol Wlodarczyk, Madison Woodrum and Daniel Worden

- - 

*There are plenty of ways to keep up on **Lemont** news:*

· ***Sign up for our daily newsletter and breaking news email alerts.*

· *Like us on Facebook for a slightly different take.* Reported by Patch 6 hours ago.

Patch Lisle, IL --

Welcome to Job Central, our weekly column listing local job advertisements and descriptions.

We scoured the Web to bring you a selection of local job ads, but if we left anything out, please don't hesitate to add the details in the comments section. Most listings were found via Indeed.com.

Lexington Health Care in Elmhurst is looking for a Squares Concierge.

Alliance Pharmacy Services in Woodridge is seeking a Data Entry Technician.

Kellogg Company in Wheaton is looking for a Part Time Merchandiser.

The TJX Companies, Inc. in Geneva is seeking a District Secretary.

Gordon Flesch in Naperville is looking for a Account Executive.

International Paper in Aurora is seeking a Warehouse Worker.

Advocate Health in Aurora is looking for a Patient Registrar.

FedEx Freight in Aurora is seeking a Dockworker.

North Central College currently has a number of openings including: 

· Web Applications Programmer
· Assistant Football Coach and Defensive Coordinator
· Head Women's Soccer Coach
· General Maintenance/HVAC Assistant Laborer
· Human Resources/Business Affairs Systems Analyst
· On-Call Campus Safety Officer Reported by Patch 3 days ago.

In my discussions with pro-gun advocates from the conservative right, I have repeatedly come across similar arguments supported by misrepresentations of fact. Although I addressed some of these in my last article on guns, I will readdress and enumerate those assertions, one-by-one, with supporting facts that should be considered.

*"More guns equal less crime!"*

John Lott Jr. wrote a controversial book titled More Guns, Less Crime that has been debunked by peer review. The Harvard Injury Control Research Center discovered a positive correlation between gun ownership and violence. Since the 1970's crime has been declining with gun ownership in the United States. However, recently gun ownership has been increasing and not surprisingly, violent crime.

The south is the most violent region in the country, and has the highest prevalence of gun carrying. The Johns Hopkins Center For Gun Policy and Research found that expanding conceal carry laws increases aggravated assaults. European countries have strikingly more stringent gun restrictions and less gun violence. Comparatively, 15 of the 25 worst mass shootings in the past 50 years have occurred in the US.
*
"The UK has the highest violent crime rate in the world!"*

Based on statistics, this is true. However, gun violence in the UK is substantially lower than in the US. There are several potential reasons for the high violent crime including the rise and fall of lead-based paint and leaded petrol. Researchers have linked lead to violent behavior. Another factor could be the UK's judicial system. Many repeat offenders serve shorter prison terms and find themselves back on the streets. There is no evidence however, to suggest that the high violent crime rate in the UK is due to the lack of guns.

*"Australia's gun control caused its murder rate to increase!"*

This claim is false. Murder rates in Australia reached record lows in 2009.

*"But Chicago is more violent than Houston!"*

In the US gun laws are not uniform between or even within states. Chicago has tight gun laws, but the rest of Illinois does not and neither does Indiana. It was found that many of Chicago's guns come from surrounding areas in the state or Indiana. Firearms travel from areas with loose gun laws to those with tight laws. Weak national regulations undermine attempts at gun control everywhere. The number of illegal firearms in circulation is a testament to the inadequacy of national gun laws. Most gun violence occurs with such weapons. There are also other factors that determine gun violence, but the guns themselves cannot be excused.

*"But I need my gun for defense! Gun restrictions hurt law abiding citizens!"*

John Lott Jr. and professor Gary Kleck, a criminologist, argue that guns are frequently used for self defense. These claims have also been debunked by peer review. A study by Philip J. Cook and Jens Ludwig titled "Guns in America: National Survey on Private Ownership and Use of Firearms," found that Kleck's defensive gun use numbers are "far too high" to the point of suggesting bias, as are numbers by similar studies. The National Institute of Justice found that there is even an overestimation in Cook and Ludwig's study. Another study by the Berkley Media Studies Group found similar discrepancies with Kleck's and Lott's defensive gun use claims. According to the Harvard Injury Control Research Center a gun in the home is more likely to be used to commit suicide or to threaten or kill an intimate than used to deter an attacker. The Stanford Law Review found More Guns, Less Crime to be lacking in statistical support. Lott has also come under scrutiny for ethics violations regarding his research. There has been doubt cast on whether or not Lott actually conducted his study at all.
*
"But I need a gun because the government might become tyrannical!"*

The idea of government corruption is nothing new. The Founders understood that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. They designed the system with checks and balances in order to combat this problem. Constant competition within the bureaucracy and between the three branches would assure no one person or group became too powerful. A testament to the success of this system is the fact that we have seen people like Tom DeLay, Scooter Libby, and Jack Abramoff come and go, and the machinery has kept turning.

There are 456 reported federal agencies in our government. Within each of these there are bureaucracies. What most people do not realize is that the size of government is actually a check on its power rather than a sign of it. It is true that as government grows, so too does the number of regulations, but the more people means more competition, and competition means security.

Still, safeguards against tyranny are not only systemic. America's political culture is one with a deep-rooted, 200 year tradition of democracy. The American people are extremely wary of government infringing on individual liberty which can be traced back to our revolutionary experience. There is no way in our system for one person or party to consolidate power.

This paranoia has increased greatly among right wing groups since the election of President Obama even though he is by no means the first president to support gun control measures. He is different from previous president's in one very superficial way. Given the history of the America's right, promotion for political purposes of fears that Obama is going to take away the guns and become a tyrant is reminiscent of the Southern Strategy.

*"But Hitler and Stalin took away the guns and look what happened!"
*
This argument is historically inaccurate. University of Chicago law professor Bernard Harcourt explained in his 2004 paper, Weimar Germany had tougher gun laws than Nazi Germany. Hitler expanded private gun ownership. It is true that Gypsies and Jews were not permitted to own guns, but there is no basis for the belief that these two groups would have stopped the Holocaust had they been armed. If anything, it would have "hastened their demise" according to Robert Spitzer, Chair of SUNY-Cortland's political science department. Hitler was extremely popular among the German people and throughout the world. To suggest that the only thing keeping Hitler in power was control of guns exonerates the many who supported him. The same is true of the Bolsheviks in Soviet Russia: the idea that an armed populace would have stopped Stalin is a fantasy. Like Hitler, Stalin was extremely popular.

*"But cars kill more people than guns!"*

Yes, but automobiles have a purpose other than killing people. Moreover, we regulate cars, we require seat belts, restrict speed, and require a license and insurance in order to drive. Police nationwide are cracking down on drunk driving with checkpoints. These actions have cut down on fatalities. Before you get a license you have to demonstrate ability to drive.

*"But legal gun owners don't commit crimes!"*

We covered the fact that the likelihood of homicide increases with a gun in the home. It is true however that the majority of gun crime occurs with illegal guns, but that number, as established, speaks loudly to our weak national gun laws due to interstate gun trafficking. Guns become illegal when they are bought in an area with lax laws and sold in an area with tight laws on the black market. Even then, as the number of legal guns increases, so too does the likelihood of a gun falling into the wrong hands, as shown by the Sandy Hook shooting.

According to the Cook and Ludwig survey, male gun owners in 1994 were two and a half times as likely to be arrested than non gun owners for non-traffic offenses. A Mother Jones report found that the majority of the guns used in mass shootings have been legally purchased.
*
"Criminals will not submit to background checks!"*

As established, defensive gun use is extremely rare. People disobey speed limits all the time, but does that really mean we shouldn't have them? Do speed limits do no good?

*"But the '94 Assault Weapons Ban did not work!" *

The ban was riddled with loopholes gauged into the legislation thanks to efforts by the gun lobby. What's more, research on the effects of the ban is lacking due to congressional restrictions.

Aside from assault weapons, large capacity magazines were also outlawed by the ban. While the former only account for a fraction of gun crime, the latter are much more common in murders and mass shootings according to the only formal assessment of the ban. A Mother Jones report revealed that mass shootings have been on the rise, particularly since 2007. A recent study by Johns Hopkins University found that high capacity magazines allow for higher casualties.

It is worth considering that three of the recent mass shootings have involved an AR-15 which was illegal under the ban.
*
"But the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun!"*

This argument is based more on fantasy than practicality. Columbine High School had an armed guard during the shooting in 1999 and Virginia Tech had its own campus police force, and in neither case did these good guys stop the shooter(s). During the mass shooting in Tucson, AZ, an armed man nearly shot the unarmed individual who disarmed Jared Loughner when he was reloading. Now let's apply the good guy argument to Aurora. Shouting "fire" in a crowded theater is the classic example of endangering others, one can only imagine the catastrophe that would have occurred at the Aurora theater had more people had guns.

*"But gun laws in general do not work!"*

Aside from the information given above, there is something else to consider before making this claim: Automatic weapons. Automatic weapons are used infrequently in crimes and are well regulated.
*
"But assault weapons aren't frequently used in crimes!"*

It is true that most gun violence occurs with handguns, but attacks with assault style weapons have been found to have 54 percent more deaths.
*
"But violent video games are just as responsible for gun murders!"*

Video game consumption is higher in other countries. The US is an outlier due to its high levels of gun violence.

*"But the Second Amendment is absolute!"*

The Supreme Court has ruled that this is false. Even Justice Antonin Scalia has acknowledged that the Second Amendment has limitations. Every other right Americans have has limitations. These include both speech and privacy. While people were busy defending their guns, the government has slowly been encroaching on the Bill of Rights with laws like the PATRIOT Act.
*
"But the NRA represents freedom!"*

The biggest problem with today's discussion about gun control is that ideology clouds the facts. People seek confirmation bias on the internet as opposed to forming their opinions based on real information. The NRA spends large amounts of money to skew the debate. But why is the NRA so set on opposing all gun legislation? Republican pollster Frank Luntz found that most gun owners, even those who are members of the NRA, favor tighter gun laws. In the past it has supported gun control measures. Today, the NRA represents gun manufacturers on its board of directors' Nominating Committee.
*
"But...you're wrong. This is a mental health problem, and nothing is going to change!"*

Don't shoot the messenger. Guns give people a sense of power and in the wrong hands that is a deadly combination. There is no question that poverty, a poor mental health system, drugs, and gang activity play roles in this issue; the problem of gun control is multifaceted. But, part of the solution must be tighter enforcement and tighter regulation.

The tide is turning in spite of the NRA's efforts. Popular support for gun control will eventually win out. Two-thirds of Americans favor tighter gun laws. If Congress does not act, there is reason to believe that there will be political ramifications. Every day people are killed by guns, legal and illegal. Reported by Huffington Post 3 days ago.

OAKLAND, Calif., Feb. 5, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- McKay Brothers, LLC is pleased to announce the achievement of 8.27 millisecond round trip latency between Aurora, IL and Secaucus, NJ and 8.23 milliseconds round trip between Aurora and 165 Halsey St. in Newark. "I'm confident we had... Reported by PR Newswire 3 days ago.

Passionate time-lapse photographer Joel Shat joined the team of Timeframehd’s contributors.


It was announced that Joel Shat, a Canadian photographer and co-founder of Timedrops Media became one of the footage contributors of the specialized time-lapse stock footage library TimeframeHD.com.

Joel Shat is a young photographer from Vancouver, Canada. Shat and his friend Daniel Gogolin established video production company Timedrops Media. At this time Joel works as a Director of Photography and Daniel, after studying the business of entertainment at Vancouver Film School, serves a Chief Operations Officer. The company produces motion controlled video time-lapse content influenced by the nature of beautiful sceneries of North America.

Joel is also very enthusiastic about shooting astro time-lapse which results in number of fascinating videos of stars on the clear night sky as well as Aurora Borealis videos.

At TimeframeHD Joel Shat’s work is presented in the following collections: Night Sky, North America, Winter, Aurora Borealis, Lakes and Rivers, Forest, Mountains and other collections.
Business companies and other organizations can employ these creative clips for producing top quality presentations, ads, corporate videos, educational videos etc.

Video footage provided by Joel Shat is highly professional and deserves to be placed among world’s best time-lapses. We at Timeframehd.com welcome Joel and Daniel and look forward to many years of cooperation.

About:

Time-lapse stock footage library Timeframehd (www.timeframehd.com) is set to become the world’s number one source of time-lapse footage. The library represents high quality HD time-lapse photography works from talented cinematographers worldwide.

Please contact Timeframehd if you would like to talk about becoming a contributor by contacting our Managing Editor, Pip Crosley info@timeframehd.com

Company Contact Information
timeframehd.com
Pip Crosley
93 Bownham Park
Rodborough Common
GL5 5BZ
+44 (0) 208 123 3887

News and Press Release Distribution From I-Newswire.com Reported by i-Newswire.com 3 days ago.

Patch Wheaton, IL --

By Beth Lawton

Calling the six-days-per-week mail delivery business model “no longer sustainable,” the U.S. Postal Service Wednesday morning announced it will eliminate Saturday delivery of mail by Aug. 1.

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Post offices will remain open Saturdays and package deliveries will occur on Saturdays, according to the U.S. Postal Service. * *

According to the U.S. Postal Service, the reasons are continued economic struggles and the increasing use of the Internet for communications and bill paying by consumers. The U.S. Postal Service is also the only federal agency required to pre-fund health benefits for retirees, and those costs are escalating quickly.

“Our current business model of delivering mail six days a week is no longer sustainable. We must change in order to remain an integral part of the American community for decades to come.”

Saturday is the lightest mail delivery day by volume and many businesses are closed on Saturdays, according to the U.S. Postal Service. However, many residents receive print magazines and ads on Saturdays in the mail that may be shifted to another day.

A Rasmussen poll on mail delivery in 2012 showed “Three-out-of-four Americans (75%) would prefer the U.S. Postal Service cut mail delivery to five days a week rather than receive government subsidies to cover ongoing losses.”

A USA Today/Gallup poll in 2010 found the majority of U.S. residents surveyed were ok with eliminating Saturday delivery. The March 2010 telephone survey of 999 adults revealed people age 55 and older were more likely than younger people to have used the mail to pay a bill or send a letter in the past two weeks.

In January, the Postal Service increased the cost to mail a one ounce letter to 46 cents a stamp.

Here's are the Saturday hours for post offices around the area:

· Wheaton: 122 N. Wheaton Ave., open 8 a.m. - 1 p.m. 
· Wheaton: 46 Danada Sq. W., open 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
· Plainfield: 14855 S. Van Dyke Rd., open 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
· Elmhurst: 154 W. Park Ave., open 8:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
· Glen Ellyn: 757 DuPage Blvd., open 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
· Glen Ellyn: 528 Pennslyvania Ave., closed Saturday 
· Naperville: 5 S. Washington St. Suite 105, open 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.
· Naperville: 3075 Book Rd. Suite 103, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
· Naperville: 1750 W. Ogden Ave., 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.
· Lisle: 817 Ogden Ave., open 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
· Aurora: 3900 Gabrielle Ln., open 8:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
· Aurora: 6S404 Eola Rd., open 9:30 - 11:30 a.m.

*How will this change affect you? Will you miss getting mail on Saturdays? * Reported by Patch 2 days ago.