Man loses bid to dismiss 1989 charge because of trial delay

A former North Chicago man lost his bid to have a 1989 attempted murder charge against him dropped because the state took too long to bring him to trial.

Ronald Mitchell, 62, argued that the police knew exactly where he was after he was accused of shooting his wife in their former home and did not try very hard to bring him in.

Defense attorney John Murphy of Waukegan said Mitchell was charged with attempted murder and armed violence shortly after the shooting, but had moved to Cleveland in the interim.

He told police where he was going, Murphy said, yet they made no effort to arrest him until February of 2003.

Murphy, then an assistant public defender, argued that the length of time between the charges being brought and Mitchell's arrest was unreasonable, and Circuit Judge Mary Schostok agreed in October of that same year.

The case was dismissed, and Mitchell moved back to Cleveland after again telling authorities where he was going to be living.

The state appealed Schostok's ruling and Mitchell received regular notices of the progress of the appeal, including word that Schostok had been overruled by the appellate court in November of 2005.

But again, no real effort was made to re-arrest Mitchell on the charges until April of last year, when he was brought back to Lake County to face the charges.

Murphy, now in private practice, again argued that Mitchell had a right to be brought to trial on the charges within 120 days of the order of the court and the state's failure to arrest him was the reason he had not been.

Bur Circuit Judge John Phillips did not see it that way in a ruling issued Wednesday.

Calling the case, "Quite hopefully atypical of the ones brought before the court," Phillips said he believed both sides of the case were at fault.

He said while it was clear police should have made more of an effort to bring Mitchell in, it was equally clear that Mitchell was aware the original decision to set him free had been reversed.

Knowing that, Phillips said, Mitchell had an obligation to turn himself in if he wanted to hold the state to a deadline for putting him on trial.

Phillips said the charges against Mitchell could proceed, and scheduled an April 28 trial date.

If convicted, Mitchell faces up to 30 years in prison.

First graduates: Three women became the first graduates of the Lake County Drug Court program last week.

Drug court is an intensive 30-month program aimed people whose substance abuse problems keep them in the revolving door to prison.

Sharon Chapley, 43, of Waukegan; Nicole Davis, 36, of Round Lake Beach and Kelly Hilson, 42, of North Chicago, completed the program last week and were honored in a ceremony.

Circuit Judge John Phillips said the trio, each of whom has served multiple terms in prison, committed themselves to breaking the hold addiction had on them.

They endured constant monitoring and met progress goals set out for them throughout the 30 months, Phillips said, and became "house mothers" to others in the program.

"Whenever anyone was getting ready to give up and just go to prison, these three were the first to get into their faces," Phillips said. "They would tell them about prison and challenge them to do something real with their lives."

All three are now living on their own, steadily employed and enjoying more than two years of drug-free existence, Phillips said.

"The transformations of their lives has been incredible," he said. "It is nothing short of a miracle."