Lakemoor woman allowed toilet planters

A McHenry County woman has successfully challenged a village ordinance that tried to keep her from using the two toilets and the sink in her front yard as planters for her lilies and hostas.

Tina Asmus of Lakemoor was fined $25 last June after police said the bathroom fixtures violated the village's public nuisance ordinance.

At a hearing Wednesday, McHenry County Judge Michael Caldwell said the planters didn't appeal to him, but he said the ordinance was being misapplied. Caldwell said it was really aimed at junker cars and unauthorized scrap metal recycling yards.

For the moment, Asmus has the toilets filled with poinsettias for the holidays. The (Crystal Lake) Northwest Herald reports one of them has "God bless my neighbors" written on it, as well as a smiley face.