Grand jury to investigate accusations against McHenry Co. state's attorney
A grand jury will be empaneled Friday to investigate allegations of criminal wrongdoing by McHenry County State's Attorney Louis Bianchi, a special prosecutor confirmed this morning.
Retired Lake County Judge Henry Tonigan III, appointed Sept. 18 to investigate the claims against Bianchi, said he will call the panel together as part of an ongoing probe into claims the state's attorney had his secretary perform campaign-related work while on county time.
Tonigan declined to comment on reports from numerous people familiar with the probe that the investigation has branched out beyond just those allegations and into other claims of other improprieties within Bianchi's administration.
"I can't tell you about the scope of the investigation," Tonigan said at the McHenry County courthouse today. "There are a lot of purposes for a grand jury."
Tonigan said he could not predict how long or how often the grand jury would meet, or when it would begin calling witnesses. He declined to comment on whether he would ask the jury to subpoena Bianchi to testify.
Bianchi said he and his office would fully cooperate with the investigation.
"We look forward to a conclusion and of being absolved," he said.
He declined to comment on whether he hopes to appear before the grand jury to explain his actions and defend himself against the accusations.
Among those the panel could hear from is Amy Dalby, Bianchi's former personal secretary who claims she was required to do political work for him during business hours. Among the work, Dalby said, was typing letters to campaign supporters, keeping a political donor list and setting up at a political fundraiser.
The 25-year-old Woodstock woman, now a student at Northern Illinois University, made the claims last year after another special prosecutor, sought by Bianchi in 2007, had her indicted on multiple felony charges for copying and removing thousands of computer files from the office when she worked there in 2005. Dalby ultimately pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor computer tampering charge and was sentenced to court supervision.
She later said she removed the documents, and later turned them over to political opponents of Bianchi, to prove she had performed campaign work on county time.
Bianchi, a second-term Republican from Crystal Lake, repeatedly has denied campaigning out of his county office. When McHenry County Judge Gordon Graham appointed Tonigan to look into the claims, Bianchi said he welcomed the investigation.
Dalby attorney Wesley Pribla said his client has not yet been summoned to appear before the grand jury, but expects she will be before the investigation wraps up. She previously met with Tonigan's investigators for an "extensive" interview, he said, but declined to discuss the substance of those discussions.
"It's a sad day for McHenry County when its chief prosecutor is being investigated by a grand jury," Pribla said.
The Bianchi investigation timelineA special prosecutor confirmed Thursday that he will impanel a grand jury starting today to investigate allegations of criminal wrongdoing by McHenry County State's Attorney Louis Bianchi. It is the latest in a string of events surrounding the claims that date back more than 21/2 years, starting with confidential tip to a Bianchi investigator and an inquiry from the Daily Herald:Oct. 3, 2007: State's Attorney Investigator Ron Salgado receives confidential tip claiming that a former female employee "close to Bianchi" had removed computer files from the office.Oct. 9, 2007: Daily Herald files Freedom of Information Act request seeking state's attorney documents purporting to show that former Bianchi secretary Amy Dalby performed campaign-related work on county time. Request denied.Nov. 29, 2007: Citing the discovery of those documents in a computer search, Bianchi asks for a special prosecutor to investigate whether they were unlawfully removed from his office and distributed to political opponents. McHenry County Chief Judge Michael Sullivan appoints former Cook County prosecutor David O'Connor.Feb. 2, 2008: After a bitter campaign with former county prosecutor Daniel Regna, Bianchi wins the Republican nomination for state's attorney.Nov. 4, 2008: Bianchi defeats Democrat Thomas Cynor to win second term as state's attorney.Feb. 18, 2009: O'Connor publicly confirms special grand jury investigating claims of stolen files.Feb. 26, 2009: Dalby indicted by special grand jury on charges of official misconduct, computer tampering, computer fraud and theft.April 23, 2009: Through her attorney, Dalby files petition for special prosecutor to investigate her claims she performed political work at Bianchi's behest on county time.May 27, 2009: Dalby pleads guilty to misdemeanor computer tampering, later says she removed documents to prove her accusations against Bianchi. O'Connor says it was part of scheme to aid Bianchi's political rivals. She is sentenced to court supervision.Sept. 4, 2009: McHenry County Judge Gordon Graham announces he will appoint special prosecutor to investigate Dalby's claims. Two weeks later, he names former Lake County Chief Judge Henry Tonigan III as special prosecutor.April 8, 2010: Tonigan confirms he will begin seating a grand jury April 9 to investigate whether any criminal actions were taken by Bianchi or others. <div class="infoBox"><h1>More Coverage</h1><div class="infoBoxContent"><div class="infoArea"><h2>Stories</h2><ul class="links"><li><a href="/story/?id=371793">How a grand jury works <span class="date">[04/08/10]</span></a></li></ul></div></div></div>