Hanover Park woman pleads guilty in stabbing

A Hanover Park woman who stabbed a lifelong friend after finding her alone with her estranged husband avoided a potential prison sentence Monday by admitting guilt to a reduced charge.

Kristin A. Radizoch, 27, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery as part of a deal struck with McHenry County prosecutors on the day she had been scheduled to face trial for felony aggravated battery stemming from the December 2006 stabbing in Lake in the Hills.

Under the plea bargain, Radizoch will spend a year on probation and pay the victim $5,000 in restitution. She also must attend anger management counseling, pay a $500 fine and have no contact with the victim, a 27-year-old Crystal Lake woman, while on probation.

First Assistant McHenry County State's Attorney Thomas Carroll said the victim, a friend of Radizoch's since kindergarten, was eager to get the case resolved.

"The victim did not want to see (Radizoch) go to jail," Carroll said. "She was primarily concerned about putting this behind her and getting her medical bills paid."

The incident, authorities said, occurred Dec. 19, 2006, when Radizoch and her husband were separated and living apart.

Radizoch, authorities said, returned to the couple's former home in Lake in the Hills that day to retrieve her belongings when she found her husband and the victim in a compromising position.

Radizoch, Carroll said, attacked the woman with a box cutter, causing shallow cuts to her back and arm. The victim needed medical attention, but the wounds were not considered life threatening.

"It was a crime of passion," Carroll said. "She was very upset about what she saw."