CRYSTAL LAKE—Last May in a strongly worded letter copied to County Board members, State’s Attorney Louis Bianchi (R-Crystal Lake), and the chairs of the Republican and Democratic parties, County Board President Ken Koehler (R-Crystal Lake) threatened criminal prosecution of a Democratic Party candidate for improperly using the official County Seal “for political purposes.” Koehler cited the county Ethics in Government Ordinance as the basis for this action.

However, despite notice from Mr. Koehler that use of the County Seal for “political purposes” violates the Ethics Ordinance, County Board Members John Hammerand (R-D4), Mark Munaretto (R-D1), and Nick Provenzano (R-D3) are each currently distributing campaign materials displaying the County Seal.

“The same letter which was forwarded to our attention regarding Chairman Koehler’s position on the Ethics Ordinance was forwarded to all County Board members, including these gentlemen,” noted McHenry County Democratic Chair Kathleen Bergan Schmidt. “Apparently Mr. Koehler is not interested in enforcing the Ethics Ordinance when it involves his own endorsed candidates.”

Bergan Schmidt noted that Provenzano, in particular, has taken public credit for support and passage of the Ethics Ordinance.

Vice Chair Sam Melei said that, “although we took issue with Mr. Koehler’s legal interpretation of the Ethics Ordinance in regard to use of the Seal, his current selective enforcement is hypocritical and self-serving.” He said that Koehler “flat out threatened” the Democratic candidate with one year of jail time if he continued to use the seal. “Mr. Koehler acts as if there are two different sets of rules, one for candidates he endorses and one that everybody else is to live by.”

“This abuse of authority clearly underlines the need for new leadership at the county level,” Melei said, “leadership committed to the fair application of law and to equity and justice for all residents, not a favored inner circle.”

All three Republican County Board members, each a candidate for re-election, continue to circulate campaign literature prominently featuring the County Seal.