Herald staff pick Lake Co.'s top stories of 2009

For the second-straight year, the recession and its impact on local businesses and residents was among the biggest stories the Daily Herald's Lake County bureau covered in 2009.

But not all of the year's big news stories were economic. We also wrote about tragic loss, political upheaval and an ongoing battle between school administrators and students over media freedom.

Here are our selections for Lake County's Top 10 stories of 2009.

Economy sinks

Some economic experts say the recession is over, but the economic downturn definitely affected Lake County businesses, employees and consumers in 2009.

Unemployment rose; stores closed and remained vacant; furlough days became part of the vernacular.

Government agencies were not exempt. Many Lake County communities slashed budgets and laid off workers in 2009, including Wauconda, Mundelein and Fox Lake. So did Lake County itself, when the county board agreed to eliminate housekeeping positions at the Winchester House nursing home earlier this month as a cost-savings move.

Tot killed at day care

The year was just a few weeks old when Daily Herald readers were horrified by the murder of 16-month-old Benjamin Kingan, a Deerfield toddler who authorities said was thrown to the ground at a Lincolnshire day care center. Employee Melissa M. Calusinski of Carpentersville was charged with first-degree murder in the case, which is pending.

The investigation didn't stop with Calusinski's arrest. The Minee Subee in the Park day care center was closed by state authorities, and owner Judith Katz of Arlington Heights was arrested in March and charged with obstruction of justice. Prosecutors said Katz instructed employees what to say to police about the boy's death.

This summer, the center opened under new management and with a new name.

Motorcyclist killed

Lake Zurich motorcyclist Anita Zaffke was waiting for a stop light to turn green on Rand Road at Old McHenry Road when she was struck from behind and killed by a motorist.

The May 2 tragedy, police said, was the result of distracted driving. Lora L. Hunt, of Morris, was painting her fingernails when she rammed her car into Zaffke's motorcycle, authorities said.

Hunt initially was charged with a traffic violation, but she later was indicted and charged with reckless homicide. She pleaded not guilty. The case, which drew national attention to the problem of distracted driving, is pending.

Break in murder case

Deerfield resident Rhoni Reuter and her unborn child were murdered in 2007, but it wasn't until this past March that police caught the woman they say was responsible for the crimes.

Marni Kay Yang methodically plotted the attack and then went to great lengths to conceal her involvement, authorities said. A disguise, a rental car, stolen license plates and a gun with a homemade silencer were among the tools the 41-year-old Chicago resident used to commit and cover up the crime, authorities said.

Yang was charged with first-degree murder and intentional homicide of an unborn child. Authorities said the crime was motivated by jealousy. Reuter, was dating former Chicago Bears star Shaun Gayle, an acquaintance of Yang's.

The case is pending.

>H1N1 flu mania

Schools closed. Employees stayed home from work. Hand disinfectant became the accessory of the year.

All because of the flu.

Fear of the H1N1 virus, also called swine flu, led to countless media reports, announcements from various health agencies and concern in the general population that sometimes bordered on hysteria.

First diagnosed here in the spring, much of the year was spent wondering when the government would develop a vaccine to protect residents from the potentially deadly disease. Then when a vaccine was developed, there wasn't enough of it to go around. That led to rationing and long lines at some Lake County flu clinics.

Reacting to the strong demand for the vaccine, all of the county health department flu clinics held since the initial batch of drop-in sessions have been by appointment only. Earlier this month, however, officials announced there should soon be enough vaccine available for everyone.

As of early-December, an estimated 108 Lake County residents have been hospitalized with H1N1 and five have died from H1N1-related complications.

Political changes

The spring brought warmer temperatures, blooming flowers, the start of the baseball season and a surprising number of changes in local government.

Perhaps the biggest shock occurred in Waukegan when Lake County Board member Bob Sabonjian, running as an independent, upset incumbent Richard Hyde to become the mayor. Elsewhere, new mayors were elected in Antioch, Libertyville, Hawthorn Woods, Wauconda and other suburbs.

Some of the county's political changes in 2009 weren't election-related. Two veteran Lake County Board members - Pamela Newton and Michael Talbett - quit to take appointed, managerial jobs in local towns. Talbett's hiring in Kildeer was particularly newsworthy. It led to charges of nepotism, because Mayor Nandia Black is his sister-in-law. One Kildeer trustee quit over Talbett's hiring.

The departures of Sabonjian, Newton and Talbett from the county board left three vacancies on that panel. All were filled by appointment.

Kirk runs for Senate

If you follow politics in Lake County, your eyes were on U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk earlier this year. We waited - and waited and waited - for the Highland Park Republican to decide whether he was going to run for his 10th District seat again in 2010 or instead campaign for the Senate or governor's office.

In July, after seemingly endless speculation, Kirk announced he'd run for the Senate seat now held by Roland Burris. His decision set off a political domino rally as potential candidates for a variety of other offices decided their campaign futures.

For example, Democratic state Sen. Michael Bond of Grayslake opted to seek re-election rather than run for Kirk's seat, as he'd initially planned. Democratic state Sen. Susan Garrett of Lake Forest decided to stay put, too. Former state GOP leader Andy McKenna abandoned a threatened U.S. Senate campaign and ran for governor instead. And Dan Seals, who'd twice run for Congress against Kirk - and lost - was among those who announced bids for the U.S. House.

Hydes arrested

Just about one month after he left office, former Island Lake mayor Thomas Hyde was arrested in June in what authorities described as a ghost payrolling scam involving the village-owned preschool, Creative Playtime. Hyde's wife, Sharon, was arrested and charged, too.

Sharon Hyde, was accused of collecting more than $100,000 in pay for hours she did not work as director of the preschool. Her husband was accused of violating the law by voting as a trustee and mayor to pay his wife.

Despite the arrests, Sharon Hyde remains director of Creative Playtime. She has been vigorously defended by new Mayor Debbie Hermann and Hermann's allies on the village board.

The cases are pending.

Thomas Hyde was found not guilty of forgery and official misconduct in another criminal matter this summer. Hyde had been charged for changing the name of the owner of 3D Bowl/Sideouts on a liquor license in 2008 after a plan to sell the establishment stalled.

Hyde's attorney said his client was the subject of a political vendetta.

Feud over Statesman

Twice this year, Stevenson High School administrators and teen journalists battled over the student newspaper, the Statesman.

In February, District 125 officials ordered more oversight of the Statesman after what they said were reporting problems in a Jan. 30 story about teenagers preferring casual sexual "hookups" to traditional dating. Parents were divided over the decision, which student-press advocates decried as censorship.

A few months later, Statesman adviser Barbara Thill quit that post but remained on staff as a teacher.

Then, in November, Statesman staffers and the administration again battled over stories planned for that month's issue.

Students said one planned article was censored and another was scrapped because officials pledged to discover the name of a student who, while being quoted anonymously, admitted to illegal behavior. School spokesman Jim Conrey said officials were acting prudently in forcing the students to publish the November issue without the two controversial articles.

Conrey was the school's lone voice during the latest controversy, while several members of the Statesman staff sought out the media to talk about the situation. And again, student-press advocates criticized the school over the issue.

Fairgrounds open

After much anticipation and more than a little wondering about whether the site would be ready, the 2009 Lake County Fair opened in July at its new home at Midlothian and Peterson roads in Grayslake.

Bad weather, union disputes and money issues hampered the $20 million project, which involved more than five years of planning and a move from the old fairgrounds at routes 120 and 45 in Grayslake. But sure enough, the fair opened on time on July 28.

Not everything was ready, however. The fair opened without a planned second exhibition building, a permanent ticketing and information facility, a show barn or remote washroom facilities. The grass parking area made for difficult driving and walking, too.

Nonetheless, people came and enjoyed the corn dogs, elephant ears, rides and events.