Briefs: Woman charged in battery

A 28-year-old Chicago woman has been charged with aggravated battery and retail theft after an incident at the Rolling Meadows Wal-Mart store on Monday. Prosecutors said Marilyn Juarbe was with her three young children when she went into the Wal-Mart, removed several items from their packaging and put them in a nylon backpack. She then paid for some school supplies, but left the store without paying for the other items, police said. When an employee tried to stop her, she used a key to stab him in the cheek, prosecutors said. She also kicked, spit on and punched another employee and, when a police officer tried to arrest her, twisted his wrists and clawed him, prosecutors said. Authorities said the man who was stabbed required two stitches. Juarbe was given a $30,000 bond. She's due in court again at 9 a.m. Sept. 14.

Robbery suspects sought:

Buffalo Grove police are searching for two men connected to an armed robbery. The police responded to the Smoke Hut, 1140 W. Lake Cook Road, around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. The store clerk told authorities two men entered the store and requested a carton of cigarettes. As she was getting them, one man displayed a handgun and ordered her to the back of the store, police reports said. The clerk said her wrists and ankles were bound with duct tape, and she was placed in a bathroom. The clerk was able to free herself after the two men left the store, police said. An undetermined amount of cash was taken, according to police. The only description of the two men given is that one is tall and heavyset while the other is of medium build. Anyone with any information on the armed robbery should call the Buffalo Grove department at (847) 459-2560.

Cops warn of car part theft:

Over the past two weeks, Schaumburg police have received several reports of the theft of catalytic converters from vehicles in parking lots in the general area of Golf and Meacham roads. Thieves are targeting sport-utility vehicles and pickup trucks, presumably because they have higher ground clearance. Because of the way catalytic converters are mounted on certain makes of vehicle, they can be cut out in less than five minutes. Police are reminding people to be vigilant for any suspicious activity in parking lots. Anyone who sees a person acting in a suspicious manner, carrying hand tools or crawling under vehicles should call 911 immediately.

Birdcage still not OK'd:

The North Barrington Zoning Board of Appeals came to a split decision Tuesday on the fate of a local couple's desire to build a flight cage in their yard. The issue will now be sent to the North Barrington Village Board, which is scheduled to give a final ruling on the issue Wednesday. Jennifer and Roelof Boonstra had already begun building the cage on their property earlier this summer before being denied a permit to do so. The Boonstras operate a wildlife rehabilitation operation on their property. The next village board meeting is to start at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at North Barrington Village Hall, 111 Old Barrington Road.

Amvets donate a bus:

Amvets Post 66 in Wheeling donated a bus to the North Chicago VA Medical Center Wednesday morning. The bus will be used to transport disabled veterans. Post Cmdr. Tony Altieri said the bus was obtained through a $75,000 grant administered by the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs. Altieri said the post was originally going to pay for the bus itself, when the former state commander of Amvets put him in contact with the department's director, Tammy Duckworth. The bus, obtained from Central States Bus Sales of Big Rock, actually cost slightly more than $75,000. Altieri said Amvets had already put a $10,000 deposit on the bus before the grant was obtained. Instead, it used money earmarked to buy the bus to buy 50 television sets for the medical center."We've been very fortunate. We've been doing fairly well. We thought it would be nice if we could buy them a bus." In the past, the medical center had to rent a vehicle.