Debate continues over bill for Avon Twp. computer damage

Negotiations are expected to continue on the amount former Avon Township Supervisor Shirley Christian should pay for computer damage from an accidental file erasure before she left office.

The township's new regime, led by Supervisor Sam Yingling, last month sent a letter demanding Christian pay $2,000 in restitution for repairs to the damaged computer, a replacement model, file restoration from backup tapes and lawyer fees.

But Christian's attorney, Rudolph Magna, said his review of bills associated with the incident shows she owes nowhere near what the township claims. Magna said he expects negotiations to continue and that more compromise will be necessary.

"It doesn't behoove anybody to go to the wall on this," he said.

Christian is offering $442.49 for computer repair and $121.25 spent on file restoration through use of backup tapes, Magna said. She shouldn't have to cover the purchase of a new computer if the older one at the root of the incident was fixed, he added.

"By their very own letter to Shirley," Magna said, "their old computer was restored."

Christian also is willing to pay $200 of an $800 legal bill Avon Township submitted, Magna said, because not all of township attorney Gerald Dietz's work on the bill was related to the computer file deletion.

Yingling said he's hopeful an agreement can be reached in a week or so. The full five-member township board would have to approve any deal at a public meeting.

Christian's total offer to the township is $763.74, well below the $2,000 sought from her.

Lake County state's attorney's office officials say an investigation showed there were no criminal intent when the supervisor's computer files were destroyed just before Christian departed office. Prosecutors suggested she pay for the computer damage.

Prosectors began looking into the computer file erasure at Yingling's request after he took office May 18.

Christian has said all of the files were accidentally deleted by her daughter and a friend - who acted on her request - with a program that was more powerful than expected. She said she only wanted the two to remove e-mail addresses and other personal information.

In a document issued to the township board, Yingling wrote that Karen Christian-Smith and Gregory Koeppen used Active@KillDisk hard-drive eraser on the computer. KillDisk destroys all data on hard and floppy drives.

Christian-Smith is executive director of the Grayslake Area Chamber of Commerce, a job formerly held by her mother. Koeppen is Lake County Farm Bureau's manager and was treasurer for Christian's political slate.

Avon Township includes all or part of Grayslake, Hainesville, Third Lake and the Round Lake area.