State dismisses election complaint against Buffalo Grove trustee

The Illinois State Board of Elections ruled Tuesday that a complaint against Buffalo Grove Trustee Lisa Stone was not filed on justifiable grounds.

The official finding, in closed session, was that the matter would not go to public hearing and there would be no further action, according to a source on the election board.

The complaint was filed by Buffalo Grove resident Adam Moodhe, who charged that Stone's campaign disclosure statement was improper because it did not report when bills were actually paid. Stone and her husband Gary said the report reflected when the bills were invoiced, in the interest of accuracy.

"I'm not going to appeal it. It's not worth my time," Moodhe said. "I still have some serious questions, but apparently I couldn't convince enough people."

The evening before the election board's action, Stone, during a meeting of the Buffalo Grove village board, said that Moodhe was the campaign manager of one of her defeated opponents in this year's election, Michael Terson.

Stone's comments came at the end of a meeting in which Terson suggested that Stone should recuse herself from voting on a proposal for a dance club at the eSkape entertainment center because of unspecified ties to eSkape's managing partner Bill Feldgreber. Each denied the others charges.

Stone said Tuesday she was pleased with the decision by the election board because she "looked to do everything by the book. I even videotaped my petitions being notarized. - It is very irritating that Adam Moodhe, Mike Terson's campaign manager, felt compelled to investigate my election filing."

On a Facebook posting, Terson referred to Moodhe as his "right hand man" and Terson said he may have jokingly referred to Moodhe as his campaign manager. While Moodhe distributed fliers and "talked me up to people he knew," and offered advice, he didn't run the campaign, Terson said.

Moodhe Tuesday said, "Mike and I are friends. Our kids play together. They're like best friends." But he said Terson ran his own campaign.

At Monday's board meeting, Terson said Stone criticized other trustees for fast-tracking legislation, only to suggest that the board should give eSkape's proposal quick approval. And Stone's crusade against teenage drug use is inconsistent with her subsequent support of the eSkape proposal, he said, explaining that in his seven years of experience working in clubs, it's impossible to keep drugs out even with well-intentioned management.

His remarks were cut short when Village President Elliott Hartstein ruled him out of order.

Stone said that her initial reaction to the eSkape proposal was positive, but after talking to Buffalo Grove police Chief Steve Balinski, who expressed public safety concerns, she feels the village should be cautious.

And Stone said she has only known Feldgreber since March and he hasn't contributed a penny to her campaign. "It's unfair. It's not true," she said, of Terson's suggestion that they were so closely aligned that she should recuse herself.

When Terson attempted to reply, Hartstein used his gavel and told Terson he could not speak.