By: Diane Benjamin
As I stated in this story Erika Reynolds, State’s Attorney had not responded to my two requests: https://blnnews.com/2024/01/31/tri-valley-lost-my-trust/
She did last night. I not only emailed her directly, but I also sent two emails to the General address listed on the County website. (stateattny@mcleancountyil.gov)
From Erika:
Wed, Jan 31 at 6:44 PM
I am sorry for not seeing this sooner. I missed it. I’ve been out on maternity leave so I’ve been in and out of the office and sporadically checking my emails. I will be back full time Monday. I have directed Trevor, my first civil assistant, to address immediately. You should hear from him later this week.
Erika
Babies are wonderful (I congratulated her), but nobody else was in charge in her absence?
I did receive this response from Trevor this morning:
Ms. Benjamin,
States Attorney Reynolds asked me to look into the concern you’ve raised. The Tri-Valley School Board did not change its public comment policy in January; the 3-day notice requirement is long-standing but was only recently published on a School Board document. I’ve been told the School Board has not enforced the 3-day rule, nor does it intend to. My understanding is that at its February meeting, the Tri-Valley School Board will consider an amendment to its formal public comment policy to reflect the practice of allowing for sign-up upon arrival.
I hope this helps.
Thank you,
| Trevor J. Sierra First Assistant State’s Attorney, Civil Division (309) 888-5110 115 E. Washington St., Room 401 Bloomington, IL 61701 |
Tri-Valley had an illegal Public Comment policy they are going to change in February but they never used it to prevent people from speaking. Buying this?
>>>Having this policy in writing as they do will discourage people from speaking if they decide to address the board the day of the meeting. Most people do not know about the Open Meetings Act and the board is just fine with that. The fewer speakers there are, the better they like it.
>>>They can deny people the right to speak if they are, “certain people” who they don’t want to hear from about a, “certain topic.” They can say, “See, it’s our policy.” And again, most people don’t know about the Open Meetings Act.