Campton Hills police to launch traffic campaign
Seat belts and child restraints are the focus of a new traffic safety campaign set to launch this month in Campton Hills.
Police Chief Greg Anderson announced last week his department received a $17,444 grant from the Illinois Department of Transportation to fund five special enforcement periods in the next year.
The first leg of the effort gets under way Saturday, Nov. 14 and continues through Dec. 5, with officers patrolling target locations for motorists without seat belts, unrestrained children and speeders.
"Each driver stopped may not face a citation, but will be given educational material on speeding and the use of restraint devices," Anderson said in a news release. "The grant's objectives are to reduce severe injury and fatal traffic crashes."
According to IDOT, children between the ages of four and eight are killed in car crashes more than any other age group.
Illinois law requires children younger than eight to be properly restrained in a child safety seat or booster, and anyone younger than 18 to always wear a seat belt.
While there is no state law requiring children to ride in rear-facing seats, experts recommend them for infants who weigh less than 20 pounds. Seat belts are designed for people who weigh at least 80 pounds and stand nearly five feet tall.
Still missing: As of last Friday, authorities were still trying to track down Michael L. Robinson, who was a no-show for his Oct. 5 jury trial on heinous child battery charges.
Prosecutors say Robinson, 27, scalded the hands of a 3-year-old boy in hot water in May 2006. The victim is the son of an Elgin woman Robinson used to associate with, they said. Robinson is charged with heinous battery and aggravated battery to a child, and faces up to 45 years in prison if convicted. An arrest warrant was issued when he failed to appear for his scheduled trial earlier this month.
Finding him might be difficult.
Robinson's address is listed in court records as the 14100 block of South Tracy Avenue in Riverside, but he's lived in Carpentersville and has ties to Elgin, according to police. If you know where he is, call the sheriff's office at (630) 232-6840.
Suspicious activity: Police say St. Charles residents should be on the lookout for a man claiming to be a Comcast employee who talked his way into a woman's home last Friday.
According to a report on the city's Web site, the man told a woman on the 3000 block of Royal Queens Court that he needed to get inside to photograph work and repairs done by Comcast. He walked around, took pictures and left, she told police after realizing Comcast hadn't been to her house recently.
Police described the man as 50 to 60 years old, white, clean cut, balding and wearing glasses. He had a Comcast identification badge on a chain around his neck and carried a camera, police said. He was last seen driving an older model compact car that was light gray or silver in color.