Convicted killer: Judge mean to me when I was young

It really was a compelling argument.

A convicted killer was demanding that a judge bar himself from hearing any more of the prisoner's petitions for a new trial because the judge had verbally abused the killer as a young boy.

James Zoph, sentenced to life in prison for the 2004 murder of his aunt, Wanda Walker, was claiming that Circuit Judge John Phillips carried a more than 20-year grudge against him.

The way Zoph told the story in a motion filed with the court, Phillips had been his soccer coach when Zoph was in the 8th grade at Central Junior High School in Zion.

Zoph claimed that Phillips once called him "an animal" after seeing him collide with another player on the soccer field and had referred to his entire family as "crazy."

Such obvious prejudice against a defendant was more than enough reason for Phillips to assign Zoph's case to another judge, Zoph claimed, and he wanted it done pronto.

And it probably should have been done just that way, except for one thing.

Not a word of what Zoph had written was true.

Phillips laid out a pretty compelling argument of his own recently when he dismissed Zoph's demand.

"I have never lived in Zion, have never taught school in Zion and I most certainly have never coached soccer in Zion," Phillips said. "There may be some sports I would be capable of coaching, but soccer is not one of them."

Turow to speak: Attorney and author Scott Turow will discuss his book "Ultimate Punishment" at 7 p.m. on Aug. 28 at the Antioch Community High School auditorium.

The book details Turow's experiences with the death penalty from his days as a prosecutor to his service on then-Gov. George Ryan's death penalty commission.

The book showcases two Lake County murder cases and illustrates the evolution of Turow's attitude toward capital punishment.

The first is the 1984 murder of Michelle Thompson of Zion by Hector Ruben Sanchez, which was prosecuted by a friend of Turow's.

The author writes of how he celebrated his friend's victory when Sanchez was convicted and sentenced to death.

The second case outlines Turow's own work in successfully overturning the death sentence given to Christopher Thomas for the 1994 murder of Rafael Gasgonia in Waukegan.

At that point, Turow was opposed to the death penalty and managed in 1998 to negotiate a deal that saw Thomas' sentence reduced to 100 years in prison.

The event is free and open to the public.

Grant fights abuse: State's Attorney Michael Waller's office and the Waukegan Police Department are sharing in a nearly $20,000 grant to fight abuse of elderly people.

Waller said the U.S. Department of Justice is providing the funds for education and information for elderly victims of domestic violence.

He said the money will be used for a public campaign aimed at increasing the reporting of such incidents, which he called among the fastest-growing crimes in the country.