Mixed reactions to Hyde plea in Island Lake

As word of Sharon Hyde’s guilty plea spread through Island Lake on Monday, reaction from the town’s elected leaders ranged from sadness to enthusiastic support for the politically connected ex-worker.

Trustee Shannon Fox said she was saddened by the effect Hyde’s arrest and the legal proceedings “have had on our community, the preschool and those involved.”

“I am grateful that the matter will now be considered resolved, allowing the program to move forward with new ideas and new strategies,” said Fox, who runs the village committee that oversees Creative Playtime, the preschool Hyde ran until she was forced to resign last week as a condition of her plea.

Fox was elected this year, long after the criminal case against Hyde was made public.

Some village officials defended Hyde following her arrest, and some continued to Monday.

Trustee Donna O’Malley was among the board members who successfully adopted a controversial resolution in March 2010 that formally confirmed Hyde’s employment after she was charged.

O’Malley defended Hyde in the media at the time and did so again Monday.

“Despite Sharon taking a guilty plea, I continue to convey her innocence and always will,” O’Malley said in an email.

Trustee Connie Mascillino said the criminal case “was always between the state’s attorney’s office and Sharon Hyde.”

“It was never about the village,” Mascillino said, later explaining village trustees never sought to have Hyde prosecuted.

Mascillino voted for the March 2010 resolution, too. That effort essentially quashed a movement by another trustee to place Hyde on unpaid leave.

“(That) spoke to how the board felt about the whole thing,” Mascillino said Monday.

When asked to comment about Hyde’s guilty plea, Mayor Debbie Herrmann — a political ally of Hyde’s husband, ex-mayor Thomas Hyde — said she wasn’t aware of the details of the court proceedings.

Like Mascillino, Herrmann said village officials never were involved in the charges brought against Hyde.

“We here at the village of Island Lake wish Sharon all the best,” Herrmann said in an email.

Trustee Chuck Cermak, who joined the board this year, said he expects board members will talk about the ramifications of Hyde’s plea. He did not comment further.

Trustee Laurie Rabattini, who led the unsuccessful movement to put Hyde on unpaid leave last year, couldn’t be reached for comment. Neither could Trustee Thea Morris, who joined the board this year.