Readers' views on Trump indictment: Some say, about time; while others say, political prosecution

In one view, Kenneth Fron of North Aurora sees last week's felony charges against former President Donald Trump as opening "a Pandora's box."

"Who will be next?" Fron asks. "If Donald Trump wasn't Donald Trump, would he have been indicted? There have been many in the media and elsewhere parroting: 'Nobody is above the law.' What's missing in their statements is nobody should be the target of the law."

In another view, Joni H. Blackman of Naperville says, "It's about time that man was indicted ... I'm sure some day we will better understand what was holding back many officials from indicting him sooner, but this indictment gave me hope that he will finally have to pay for at least some of his ... behavior."

After Trump's formal arrest in New York Tuesday, the Daily Herald asked subscribers what they thought of the historic indictment. We were inundated with scores of replies, and as the examples above suggest, suburbanites seem to be as sharply divided on it as the nation.

Most agreed to be quoted for attribution, but citing today's vitriolic climate, many did not. As one woman from Elgin said, "I'm trying to keep my relationship with my friends and family intact."

The replies often came filled with passion, and while most of the emails were succinct, some spilled across several paragraphs, even pages.

Despite such passions, at least a few respondents shared a sense of exhaustion expressed by Linda Zertterberg of Aurora, who wrote, "I am so dreading reading about Trump every day for the next year."

As expected, Trump supporters tended to vilify the indictment while his detractors tended to celebrate it, but some Trump critics questioned whether the case is a weak distraction from stronger allegations against him.

"I am no fan of Trump," Joan Longmire of Huntley wrote, "but I think he should be charged as responsible for the attempted insurrection, inciting riot at the Capitol and trying to illegally change the results of the election. This other is a minor distraction to the more important (case)."

Here is a sampling of other comments:

"It's absolutely ridiculous. A waste of time and money. It's also politically motivated from one side and will only incite more unrest and separation of the country." - Joe Jandrisits, Bloomingdale.

"It is way past due. This one is not as important as the 'Trump rally' January 6th. I just want to say that if we do not stop the lying, cheating and bullying that is happening, we will lose our democracy." - Jeanne C. Scown, Palatine.

"A grand jury has decided that there was enough evidence to indict former President Trump. Trump is innocent until proven guilty in court ... The legal system needs to play out." - Steven Anderson, Schaumburg.

"The charges are so convoluted that it is obvious even to the most casual observer that this indictment is 100% political ... I hope this ridiculous indictment is thrown out ... before the nation is faced with a series of tit-for-tat indictments." - Phillip Nagel, Buffalo Grove.

"While I am a strong believer that no one should be above the law, I think this indictment is misplaced. Unfortunately, it lends credence to the charges that it is politically motivated and detracts from what seem to be more serious crimes like trying to interfere with an election and encouraging insurrection." - Gilda Karu, Arlington Heights.