Court order amended to allow Schmidt to care for elderly neighbor
A Lake County judge has altered a no-stalking order to allow state Sen. Suzi Schmidt to assist an elderly neighbor recovering from hip surgery.
Schmidt is the only other person in her Lake Villa Township subdivision able to care for the elderly woman, her attorney said. However, that will allow Schmidt to be across the street from the family that filed an anti-stalking, no-contact order against her.
Associate Judge George Strickland ordered that Schmidt may visit the elderly woman, but must give a 24-hour notice to her attorney before assisting the neighbor with shopping or transporting her to doctor appointments.
Schmidt’s attorney, Charles Schneider of Buffalo Grove, will then contact the other attorneys in the case to inform them Schmidt will be at the elderly woman’s house for the day.
Schmidt may also go to the house should a legitimate emergency arise, but is not allowed to visit the woman unannounced.
Schmidt has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges of criminal damage to property and trespassing from what authorities say was the harassment of the family for more than two years over an alleged romantic affair involving her estranged husband, Robert.
On June 9, police reports state, the victims accused Schmidt of going onto their property, taking a feed bag and throwing it into a nearby swamp. The police report says a video of the event was turned over to the Lake County sheriff’s office and the Lake County state’s attorneys office.
Schmidt was arrested June 12 and also was served with an emergency stalking no-contact order. Her trial is expected to begin Oct. 10.
The initial order of protection required Schmidt stay 500 feet from the victims. It was modified in June to allow Schmidt to have access to her Lake Villa Township home.
Lake County sheriff’s documents obtained after Schmidt’s arrest state she had routinely confronted the family starting in December 2010 after she claimed her husband was involved romantically with the female neighbor.
The woman, who is not being identified by the Daily Herald, denied having an affair with Robert numerous times in the police report.
According to reports, the victims told police they received multiple harassing phone calls, text messages and emails from Schmidt between December 2010 and February 2012, and have been confronted verbally by her.
Schmidt, a Republican, chose not to seek re-election to her legislative seat this year after facing questions last fall about whether she abused her political influence during a domestic dispute with her estranged husband.
Schmidt and her husband are now separated.