Ten days ago, I filed a Freedom of Information request with the McHenry County Sheriff’s Department asking the following question:
“Under the FOIA I request all documents that authorize Andy Zinke to use his official email for campaign purposes.”
The answer just arrived:
“We have no documents responsive to your request.”
The question was asked, of course, because of the email that Undersheriff Andy Zinke sent from his official email account, financed by McHenry County taxpayers.
Andy Zinke on Dole Avenue at this year’s Crystal Lake Independence Day Parade.
For those of you who have not read the email from Zinke’s Sheriff’s Department account about which I complained, you can do so in the articles below:
- “Do Pictures Lie? Zinke ‘Victimized’ by ‘a Local Blogger’? – You Decide” from McHenry County Blog
- “Was the E-mail Illegal?” from McHenry County Sheriff’s Race 2014
All the photos taken of Zinke at the Crystal Lake Independence Day Parade are also show in the McHenry County Blog article.
See also “Did You Know that McHenry County Has an Ethics Commission?“
A Pat Quinn employee was fined $1,000 for use of office email for campaign purposes.
Governor Pat Quinn’s Chief of Staff Jerry Stermer quit after he was found to have used his office email account for political purposes.
See also the Sun-Times article reproduced in this article.
You asked for documents Cal.
Try”records” or whatever the law allows to include any and all, etc.
I read the NWH’s article.
This is a wash.
If the Ethics Commission finds an issue they refer it to the State’s Attorney’s Office.
That’s where it will end. The State’s Attorney may be on the right side as far as who he is supporting for Sheriff but he is Nygren’s and Zinke’s best friend when it comes to not doing his job.
As long as we have a State’s Attorney that refuses to go after corruption, Zinke can use his computer, squad, tax money and anything else he wants for his campaign.
You need to ask for all emails sent by Andy Zinke referencing “Independence Day Parade”, campaign, candidacy.
Of course there is no authorization, they never would have done that.
Cal, are you going to ask the Des Plaines PD for all records authorizing its office equipment (fax machine) for use by the Prim campaign and report on it’s response?
Trying to figure out if your site is just coming out as part of the Prim campaign or if you are still operating under the auspices of “press” 😉
I do get they are a paid advertiser but you may have to start considering if your work here should be considered an in kind contribution 🙂
So much for the non bias reporting of today’s events , maybe the blog should be re named to www.
Look who cal is supporting. Com
I just read the email from Zinke’s Sheriff’s Department account as you suggested Mr. Skinner.
I failed to see Undersheriff Andy Zinke using the departmental system and hardware for political purposes.
In all fairness, he was not under attack as a candidate for Sheriff, but as the Undersheriff of McHenry County.
In his email he simply expressed that he was being victimized by lies and accusations and felt the need to explain his side as the Undersheriff of McHenry County.
Andy Zinke did state in his email an undisputable fact that since announcing his candidacy he has indeed been under personal attacks, as well as his family, friends, in-laws, and even his wife.
In this statement he was simply expressing the reasoning behind these lies and accusations that started after he announced his candidacy.
When he stated I would like to thank you for your words of encouragement and support, commonsense tells me that he is asking for their words of encouragement and support as the Undersheriff of McHenry County that is being victimized by lies and accusations.
The conclusion is the fact is that not once did he ask for support as a political candidate in his email.