Local Sexual Assault Report Has Winfield On Edge

Residents in west suburban Winfield are reacting to reports of a sexual assault.

The alleged incident happened last Tuesday afternoon in a wooded area near Providence and Essex Lane.

Winfield police are trying to find the suspect and have released this sketch.

The suspect is between 18 and 20 years old, is 5′6″ tall, has a medium build and a gold tooth on the bottom right side of his jaw.

The victim, who is a minor, apparently spotted the attacker Friday afternoon near the scene of the attack and alerted police.

The incident has residents on edge.

“There’s kids around, and now everyone’s afraid to go in the area,” said resident Marcie Amici. “So, it’s a little frightening.”

Winfield police are urging residents to be on alert and report any suspicious activity to authorities.

Bad Time for Two-Month Vacation for Winfield Village President

Note: This is a cross post with the Daily Herald. The links provide below will take you to the posting in the Daily Herald. Interesting enough the Daily Herald posted the article under two different titles. Even more interesting are the reader comments made under the post titled, Bad time for two-month vacation for Winfield Village President made by none other than Winfield’s own Citizen Pain, Stanley Zegel.

Mr. Zegel’s comments left us scratching our heads especially since Mr. Zegel was the owner of the “Slam Publication” The Winfield Register. The Winfield Register with Zegel at the helm operated on half-truths outright distortions and a barrage of personal attacks against public servants and well-meaning citizen volunteers. The “Slam Publication’s” entire context was written by Zegel or tendered by proxies recruited by Mr. Zegel masquerading as “concerned citizens.” The hypocrisy of Zegel’s comment is incomprehensible but then again you have to look at who you are dealing with. The real question is: Where is our village president?

Bad time for two-month vacation

Bad time for two-month vacation for Winfield village president

While most people would agree, everyone is entitled to a vacation, Village President Deborah Birutis gives new meaning to the expression “a little time off.”  Ms. Birutis is once again out of the country on a two month vacation, a sojourn she takes every year.

A public official needs to be accessible almost all the time to respond to the resident’s concerns or in case of an emergency to provide assistance and help.  Most people who run for office understand that part of the bargain.  But Village President Birutis does not yet seem to understand taking a two month vacation is overly excessive and irresponsible.

Missing Winfield Village President Deborah Birutis

If being village president is job number one as Ms. Birutis has told everyone, then why is she off on a two month vacation?  Especially when back home Winfield is struggling for its’ economic life. As Birutis underachieves her way through managing Winfield’s future, attempts to prop up Ms. Birutis’ leadership makes the opposite point intended: Good leaders are a very rare thing, and Deborah Birutis isn’t one of them.

Birutis has a lackadaisical attitude, evidenced by the fact she is out of the country for two months and not here working towards a solution for Winfield’s revenue shortfalls.  It’s not leadership when you try and shove all the problems facing the community onto the backs of the residents.  Furthermore, does a good leader abandon the residents in a time of need?

When Birutis was elected the residents didn’t choose for her to have a eight week vacation.  Given the challenges facing Winfield, Birutis’ two month vacation can only be view for what it is, an abandonment of concern and a gross failure of her responsibilities.

The residents are looking for leadership during these tough times, not pathetic schemes to force through yet another unpopular tax increase that would unfairly burden the residents.  More importantly, the residents are looking to their village president to be working on solutions in these difficult times, not off sunny herself for two months.