College of DuPage – Was the “source” the P.R. Firm?

DuPage C0. (ECWd) –

This morning the Chicago Tribune published an article that should have given the voters of District 502 a breath of hope.  A criminal investigation has begun and grand jury subpoenas have been issued to the College of DuPage.   (Chicago Tribune article)

Less than 6 hours later, the Daily Herald publishes an article that takes the position that no criminal charges are likely “according to sources with knowledge of the probe” (Daily Herald Article)

I knew something stunk when I saw the endorsements for candidates from the Daily Herald and wrote about them in these two articles, Part 1 & Part 2.  Two of those endorsements defied logic and appeared to have political justification over logical.

Now, for a major newspaper publication to put in print, “Sources, however, said Breuder never hid his expenses from the college’s board of trustees; he accounted for all of his spending and the board approved it”, tells me either political strings are being pulled, they have no clue what is really happening at COD, or they have bought the line of the newly hired P.R. Firm.

They went on to claim, “So while critics can question the college’s accounting and fiduciary policy, it doesn’t appear at this point that there was anything illegal, sources said.”

Using the illogical position of the source we must ask, why was John Valenta arrested? 

He is a convicted felon and recently arrested COD Radio Engineer but he never hid his invoices from the college’s board of trustees, he accounted for all his invoices and the board approved it, thus, at this point it doesn’t appear anything was illegal.

More disturbing in this reporting is the appearance of insider assurances that nothing is going to happen, which supports a call to the Federal Authorities to take over this investigation.

Under title 9-110.310 – Considerations prior to Seeking Indictment – Except as hereafter provided, a government attorney should seek approval for a RICO charge only if one or more of the following requirements is present:

Two of those items apply in my opinion.

• 6. The case consists of violations of State law, but local law enforcement officials are unlikely or unable to successfully prosecute the case, in which the federal government has a significant interest;
• 7. The case consists of violations of State law, but involves prosecution of significant or government individuals, which may pose special problems for the local prosecutor.

(Click here for Title 9 Information)

Is the Daily Herald in the tank with the local GOP?  I provided extensive documentation and answers to questions to the Daily Herald in December pertaining to the Waterleaf.  They sat silent until the Tribune broke their story.

Then in the first week of January we provided yet another interview with the Daily Herald pertaining to the Herricane Graphics no bid contract issue.  Months later, only after the Tribune ran their story, did we hear from the Herald.  A piece that was as soft peddled as any I have seen considering the evidence of pay to play.

Endorsements of Candidates that are backed by the GOP appear to support the case that the Daily Herald is just an arm for the local political class.  Today’s Illinois Review has an even more descriptive coverage of the political challenges facing the DuPage GOP.

More concerning, as referenced in the Chicago Tribune article, is the fact the DuPage County State’s Attorney not only uses the same lobbyist, but also established that lobbyist through a no bid  process, just as COD did. However that is not the only concern: The spouse of the lobbyist is the fund raising arm for the State’s Attorney’s campaign.

I pray that the State’s Attorney did the right thing and either turned this matter over to the Federal authorities or at a minimum, to the Appellate Prosecutor’s office.  I personally pray it’s in the hands of the Federal Government.  Especially in light of this weekends breaking news about questionable enrollment and credit hours being forged.  (Possible Fraud covered in this article)

As early as August of 2014, I pointed out to the board, matters that point to criminal activity and it is clear I have uncovered many more since then.

One additional point to keep in mind is that just because charges are not filed, if that turns out to be the case, it does not mean that crimes were not committed. A State’s Attorney has prosecutorial  discretion at his disposal.

I stand by my first presentation to COD!