College of Lake County police want to use 'better alternative' for minor crime

Minor crimes committed on College of Lake County property in two villages would be referred to a more-forgiving court system under tentative agreements approved by board members.

CLC police officers would be able to enforce the law by using local ordinances from Grayslake and Vernon Hills, instead of always issuing state misdemeanor charges for less-serious offenses heard in Lake County circuit court. Ordinance violation cases go to Lake County's local branch courts.

Police Chief Thomas Guenther spoke enthusiastically Tuesday night about the prospect of greater flexibility for campus officers before CLC board members approved the intergovernmental agreements with Grayslake and Vernon Hills. Vernon Hills and Grayslake village board trustees also must grant approval for the agreements to become official.

"With this particular agreement, it's basically focusing on the ordinance violations and giving us permission to write the ordinance violations, which is a better alternative for our students," Guenther said. "It gives us the ability to not write a state charge, which would follow a young person through their life and may jeopardize career choices."

CLC Trustee Richard Anderson, a criminal defense attorney, said the more-forgiving court system for the ordinance violations for minor scrapes with the law is appropriate for a school with many teenage students.

"It's better to help those people out with these ordinance violations instead of a full misdemeanor," Anderson said.

The college's main campus is at 19351 W. Washington St. in Grayslake, and its Southlake Campus is in Vernon Hills at 1120 S. Milwaukee Ave. CLC's Lakeshore Campus in Waukegan is not included in the agreements.

CLC officials said the ordinance violations brought to the branch courts would be for minor infractions or a violation committed by a first-time offender. Violations ranging from disorderly conduct to vehicle code infractions could be charged through the civil - not criminal - village ordinance violation process.

Fines, community service and stern warnings from judges typically are sentences for local ordinance violations, CLC officials said.

When questioned by Trustee Jeanne Goshgarian, Guenther said CLC police would continue using state criminal or misdemeanor charges when appropriate at the college's campuses.

"We would make the arrest ourselves," Guenther said. "We have that power."

CLC would forward any fine money received through enforcement of the villages' ordinances to Grayslake and Vernon Hills, according to the tentative agreements.