Lake County looking for new officers

Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran has the "help wanted" sign hanging.

Curran said his office is looking to hire new deputies, and although earning the right to the $47,759 per year job is not easy, it is worth it.

"As the largest police agency in Lake County, we offer a wide diversity of job assignments," Curran said. "Our salary is competitive and we have numerous opportunities for advancement."

Curran said candidates must first fill out an application, which is available from the sheriff's offices in Waukegan and Libertyville, or the county administrator's office.

The application can also be downloaded from the sheriff's Web site at www.co.lake.il.us/sheriff.

Minimum requirements for candidates are that they must be 21 years old, be able to pass a background check and have completed two years of college or military service equivalent.

From there, the climb gets steeper. Curran said in the previous hiring cycle, the office received 130 applications.

Of those, 100 showed up for the physical fitness and strength test and only 80 passed that challenge.

After the written exam that followed, Curran said 39 candidates were still in the running and only seven were still in play following a polygraph and psychological examination.

Of the seven candidates interviewed, Curran said only two were hired.

"Our candidates undergo rigorous testing before we make the decision to offer them a position, and we are very proud of that," Curran said. "We want to do everything we can to make sure we have the highest-quality individuals serving the people of Lake County."

Applications are being accepted through Aug. 3.

New judges coming: The state Supreme Court has approved the creation of two new associate judge positions for Lake County.

Any attorney licensed in Illinois who is a resident of Lake County is invited to apply for the $125,000-per year positions.

Applications can be obtained from the office of Chief Judge Christopher Starck and must be submitted to the administrative office of Illinois Courts by Aug. 10.

Applicants will be rated by polling of the Lake County Bar Association and screened by interviews by the circuit judges of the county.

The two successful applicants will be chosen by ballot of the circuit judges.

Ethics order: Curran has come through on his campaign promise to create an ethics policy for members of the sheriff's office.

A general order laying down the policy has been enacted, Curran said, and applies to each member of the staff.

The policy states that employees are to live exemplary lives both on and off duty, are expected to respect confidentiality and are required to report unethical conduct on the part of other members of the staff.

Political activity is banned for on-duty employees and off-duty employees are forbidden to use office property or resources for political activity.

The policy also guarantees protection for those who report unethical or illegal behavior of others, and ensures any member of the staff can speak with Curran at any time they feel they can not utilize the proper chain of command.

Heard in the hallway: Hats off to Waukegan city officials and whoever else was involved in handling a string of potentially stressful situations over the last week.

The city's downtown played host to large crowds during the Scoopin' Genesee festival last weekend and saw another throng turn out for Monday night's city council meeting. By all accounts, public safety was well balanced with both fun and constitutional rights and no major incidents were reported.