A North Chicago alderman was found not guilty of municipal disorderly conduct charges during a bench trial in Lake County Circuit Court.
Ald. Carl Evans was acquitted Monday, March 16, by Judge David Brodsky of charges related to a dispute with former Ald. Valerie DeVost.
Evans was cited for disorderly conduct June 13, 2014, under the city’s municipal code for allegedly making dozens of telephone calls over several days to DeVost. Evans also allegedly showed up at her job at North Chicago High School and was escorted from the building. He was arrested by North Chicago police and briefly held before being released on a signature bond.
Evans said he was trying to serve DeVost court papers related to a $1,700 civil suit judgment he eventually won against her. He was representing himself in that case, which stemmed from complications resulting from the sale of a vehicle by Evans to DeVost.
Waukegan attorney Ralph Strathmann, who represented Evans in the disorderly conduct trial, said Brodsky agreed with the defense that Evans’ actions in trying to serve the papers did not rise to the level of disorderly conduct.
The case was prosecuted by Grayslake municipal attorney Robert Brown, who was appointed as a special prosecutor after North Chicago municipal Prosecutor Charles Smith recused himself, citing a conflict of interest.
At the time of the incident, North Chicago Mayor Leon Rockingham said the matter was not City Council business when it was brought up at a City Council meeting.
“It’s a personal issue and I don’t think it has any weight on the city council or city,” he said.
Because it was a municipal case, the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office was not involved in the trial.
At one time, DeVost and Evans had been allies, with DeVost backing Evans in the spring of 2013 when he ran for her city council seat while she ran unsuccessfully for mayor.
Evans said after his arrest on the charge last summer that the two had been friends for years, and Evans ran on the fact he had the city tear down the infamous Ron Ric Motel near his home that had become a haven for drug dealers and prostitutes.
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