Attorney General Lisa Madigan comes to Lake County to prosecute man for environmental crimes. Lewis Gainor wins trial on the front page. Download the court records
Attorney Lewis Gainor is best known for his headline-news-making victory over Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan and the Environmental Protection Agency right here in Lake County. The case was the People v. John Tarkowski. (Tarkowski’s name has not been removed because the case has been publicized for years).
Lewis Gainor took on big government for his client, and won.
The case involved a parcel of land located in Wauconda, which is a small community near Lake Barrington. John Tarkowski had lived on the property for decades, and during this time, he was developing the land for use as a subdivision. His neighbors, however, opposed any change to the property because the land supported a wetlands area.
The neighborhood association fought Tarkowski in court over the development. The case went back and forth in Lake County Circuit Court for decades. Eventually, the United States EPA got involved and closed down the development. But, Tarkowski would not back down. He took the case all the way up to the United States 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, one step beneath the Supreme Court. In the 8th Circuit, the famous Judge Richard Posner ruled for Tarkowski, writing,
"Tarkowski's neighbors have been harassing him for many years. In 1978 a letter was left in his mailbox which says "Hey polock [sic] we don't want any white trash or white niggers here. We want you out--Now... the EPA brought this suit... the environmental contamination at the Site [Tarkowski's property] presents an imminent and substantial endangerment to the public health, welfare and the environment arising from the actual release or threat of release of hazardous substances from the Site. " See U.S. v. Tarkowski, 248 F.3d 596 (2001). In ruling for Tarkowski, Judge Posner wrote: "...we have no reason to believe that the EPA will continue to be obsessed as it has been for far too long with the minuscule threat to the environment that he poses." See id.
Lewis Gainor became Tarkowski’s defense attorney in 2006. The Lake County Sheriff arrested Tarkowski on criminal charges under the Illinois Environmental Protection Act. The reason was the state EPA had sealed off the property to prevent further development. They accused Tarkowski of violating the seal order by continuing to develop the property. Since Tarkowski had previously prevailed in the dispute over everyone, including the federal government, local authorities sought to use the threat of incarceration to meet their objective of shutting down the property.
The Illinois Attorney General sent its own lawyer to prosecute the case with the assistance of an assistant state’s attorney from Lake County. The case went on from late 2006 into early 2007, with attorney Lewis Gainor filing numerous motions in court to compel the prosecution to turn over all the evidence in the case.
The case finally went to trial in May 2007. At trial, 12 Lake County residents would make up a jury to hear the evidence and decide whether Tarkowski should go to jail.
The State’s case lasted for a week, with the prosecutors calling many witnesses. The People’s witnesses included scientists who had determined that the property was an environmental hazard, sheriff’s deputies who had arrested people on the property, Tarkowski’s neighbors, and even witnesses who said they violated the order with Tarkowski’s approval. News reporters from the Chicago Tribune, the Lake County News-Sun, and the Lake County Daily Herald covered the trial.
The case came down to closing arguments on May 31, 2007 in the Lake County Courthouse in Waukegan. Defense attorney Lewis Gainor told the jury, ‘Every witness who came up here and took the stand has something to gain from what happens to Tarkowski’s property.’ It was true.
Tarkowksi’s Wauconda neighborhood was about to be annexed by the affluent Lake Barrington. All Tarkowski’s neighbors stood to have their home values increase substantially. It was a financial windfall for Tarkowski’s neighbors, but only if Lake Barrington approved the annexation. And Tarkowski’s property was the holdup.
The jury took the case and deliberated late into the night. When they returned, they rendered their verdict: not guilty as to all counts.
The Illinois EPA maintains a site about the Tarkowski property. The EPA still refuses to publish the outcome of the trial.
We defend clients who are charged with environmental criminal offenses and violating local ordinances or Illinois law on land or property use. If you have been contacted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), or arrested for a misdemeanor of felony offense concerning your land, property, or business, call Gainor & Gosch PC today.
