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Child sex abuse cases increasing in county PAGE 7 - PLA1NDEALER - WEDNESDAY, MARCH 7, 1984 By Kirk Blrginal Shaw Free Press News Service The number of child sexual abuse cases reported in McHenry County so far this fiscal year has increased 41 percent on an annualized basis from last year, according to a report released. The annual report on the McHenry County Juvenile Court by the Crystal Lake - Cary League of Women Voters states that reported cases of sexual abuse of children totaled 16 in the state fiscal year's first quarter. According to Bruce Rubenstein, an administrator with the state's Department of Children and Family Services, there would be 48 sexual abuse cases alleged in fiscal 1984 if reporting continued at this quarterly rate. The court handled 34 such cases from July to June 1983 and 16 in fiscal 1982, Rubenstein stated in a memorandum to the league. From July "through October, McHenry County does appear to have experienced an increase in sexual abuse reporting," Rubenstein states in the memo, adding that the rise was "compared to a statewide projected increase of 5.2 per­ cent.'^ "This makes it all the more imperative that the courts deal with the problem. Unless these people are prosecuted, you can expect to see these kinds of increases," Janice Prunier- King, president of the Crystal Lake - Cary chapter of the League of Women Voters, said Friday. The local LWV par­ ticipated in the statewide Illinois Juvenile Court watching project from April 15 to Oct. 15, with 24 monitors observing 615 proceedings in the county's juvenile court. "Court watchers were very much concerned about the high incidence of sexual abuse in McHenry County. Many com­ ments (by monitors) reflected concern about the way these cases are being handled," the league's report stated. Julie Covert, Cary, coor­ dinator of the court watching project, said that only a small percentage of sexual abuse offenders are prosecuted because of the difficulty in obtaining sufficient evidence. Ms. Covert said that McHenry County State's Attorney Ted Floro told her that his depart­ ment prosecutes only those cases that the state's Depart­ ment of Children and Family Services brings to its attention. The DCFS is one of the state agencies responsible for providing social services to wards of the court and their families. They sponsor a number of foster homes in the county that provide paid guardianship services. Furthermore, Floro indicated that such cases are treated as a family matter, according to Covert. The league's report says that "too many sexually-abused children are being sent home too soon and are vulnerable tp further abuse. Contrary to what appears to be happening currently in McHenry County, offenders should be prosecuted." As an example of a case that was "grossly mishandled," League Treasurer Peg Fletcher said, the report cites the neglect and abuse case of a 12-year-old girl for which there were seven juvenile court hearings in 1983. At the time of the first hearing alleging physical abuse, the girl's mother and father, who were divorced and living in the home along with the mother's boyfriend, had been convicted of felonies. The father had served a prison term for assault. Testimony showed that the 12- year-old and three other children were once removed Mary Snyder, second from right, presents a check on behalf of the Whispering Oaks Garden Club to Nora C. O'AAalley, president of Northen Illinois AAedical Center. Mrs. Snyder and Gladys Erickson, far left, represented the garden club in Its fund raising project to benefit the new hospital. At right is Florence Jurkowski, second vice-president of the garden club. Bmloi CM)" gift for The Whispering Oaks Garden Club, McHenry, recently presented a check for $1,500 to Northern Illinois Medical Center (McHenry Hospital). The gift is for the purchase of an accent tree to be planted in a circle in front of the new hospital building, which is scheduled to open in June. A blue spruce tree, 14- to 16-feet high, will be planted in the circle, and will also serve as the hospital's of­ ficial outdoor Christmas tree. The funds for this gift were raised by an autumn boutique sponsored by the Whispering Oaks Garden Club, whose members worked the previous summer on handmade flower arrangements, pillows, and gift items. A plaque will com­ memorate the gift from the Club. In accepting the gift on behalf of Northern Illinois Medical Center, Nora C. O'Malley, president of the hospital, said, "The interest and support of groups such as the Whispering Oaks Garden Club is vital to a project as important as the new regional medical center. The landscaping will have an impact on the image projected by the hospital. It is reassuring and comforting to prospective patients and their families to see a welcoming entrance, where time has been taken to create an attractive setting. This gift will help make such a setting possible." Representing the garden club on this project were Mary Snyder and Gladys Erickson. from the home because of a domestic fight and were taken into the court's custody at another time because they had been left unsupervised. The girl was declared a ward of the court and placed in foster care by DCFS. Juvenile court Associate Judge Susan Fayette Hut­ chinson advised the father to undergo counseling. Two months later, DCFS personnel recommended the girl be returned to the home, and the 12-year-old "was distraught by the court's decision" to do so because she was afraid of being beaten for testifying against her parents. A short time after this hearing, one of the family's children died in an accident. The other children were kept in the home when a hearing was held about three weeks after the child's death. Such alleged mishandling of cases represented about 10 percent of those observed by the League, Fletcher said. "The greatest problem is the protective service cases, and largely, it's the Department of Children and Family Services," Prunier-King said. Although the McHenry County Department of Court Services, the local equivalent to DCFS, and other juvenile court personnel "were really doing a fine job," Prunier-King said, "they have to rely somewhat on the in­ formation they get from DCFS." She added, however, that regardless of the recom­ mendation of DCFS in the case of the 12-year-old girl, the final decision to put her back in the home was the judge's. "So you can't say DCFS bears total responsibility. The state's attorney, the defense attorney - they all do. Unfortunately, they have to rely on DCFS reports." INCOME TAX.. general News Author, professor to speak on historical archaeology Calmly, Quietly, Correctly . . . The Sauk Trail Chapter of the Illinois Association for the Advancement of Archaeology announces it has engaged Dr. Theodore Karamanski, noted author and assistant professor of History at Loyola University of Chicago, to speak at its March 17 quarterly meeting. The McHenry County group will be meeting at the headquarters of the McHenry County Con­ servation District, west on Harts Road off Route 31, north of Ringwood. The presentation will begin at 10 a.m. Dr. Karamanski is the research director of the Mid- America Research Center, an organization dedicated to using the past to serve present needs. Deeply involved in historic preservation, the Center helps to manage the local and national heritage. In an educational role in the classroom, archives, museums, and on historic sites, members of the center interpret the past. As policy analysts, members of the center work to insure that historic forces are not forgotten in the struggle to address current problems. The Center has also done important work in prehistoric and historical ar­ chaeological resources, ar­ chitectural features, and in­ terpretations of historic land­ scapes. Dr. Karamanski has recently published the book Fur Trade and Exploration. He has also authored a variety of magazine articles from "Historical Research and the Ar­ chaeologist" to "The Iroquois and the Fur Trade of the West". Dr. Karamanski will be speaking to the Sauk Trail ar­ chaeology group on the research value of historical archaeology and will illustrate his presen­ tation with a number of very interesting slides. The public is invited to attend the presentat­ ion and to remain for the Sauk Trail Chapter business meeting at which a summer field ex­ cavation schedule of both historic and prehistoric sites will be laid out. Chapter members are especially interested in two projects. They first hope to discover the use of a number of old buildings on a Conservation District site. Another major project to be discussed will be the kind of help that will be given by interested members of the chapter to Dr. Robert Salzer, professor of Anthropology at Beloit College, at a very im­ portant Effigy Mound site located in southwestern Wisconsin. For further information on Dr. Karamanski's presentation and Sauk Trail Chapter activities and memberships call (815) 653- 9459 evenings or write the chapter secretary, 8612 Memory Trail, Wonder Lake, 111., 60097. SOIL-WATER MEET Three new directors were elected to serve on the board of the McHenry County Soil and W^ter Conservation District at the thirty-seventh annual meeting. Michael Book of Harvard. 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