Spencer appointed to drug task force board

As the race for top prosecutor in Whiteside County enters its final seven weeks, Republican incumbent Gary Spencer scored a small victory with his appointment to treasurer of the area's five-county drug squad. Spencer, a founding member of the Blackhawk Area Task Force's seven-member advisory board, was tapped for the position to fill a vacancy left by retiring Whiteside County Sheriff Roger Schipper. Spencer's appointment comes in the run up to a hotly contested election in which the 27-year veteran prosecutor faces formidable opposition for only the second time in his six-term tenure. Police brass on the task force's advisory board, however, say politics had nothing to do with their decision. Amy Huffman, an assistant state's attorney in Lee County and one-time law intern for Spencer, and Elwin Neal, a private defense lawyer and Whiteside County public defender, both emerged as write-in challengers after Spencer shouldered significant public criticism for his handling of five local homicides linked to accused spree killer Nicholas T. Sheley. James Dison, chief of Kewanee Police in Henry County and chairman of the drug unit's advisory board, said Spencer's appointment had nothing to do with a tacit endorsement and everything to do with fulfilling a legal technicality of the board's bylaws. Those provisions include a mandate that the treasurer be an elected official. Schipper filled that role, but new Sheriff Kelly Wilhelmi was appointed, not elected, to finish Schipper's term. "This was just a matter of meeting the requirements of the bylaws," Dison said. Henry County's top prosecutor, Terry Patton, split responsibilities of offering legal advice to the board, a relationship that Dison believes will not be compromised by Spencer's new position. "Whenever we need a legal opinion, they've always been right there to issue advice," Dison said. "I'm sure that if there's a conflict of interest, Gary [Spencer] would step aside and Terry [Patton] would take care of it." Master Sgt. John Biffany, commander of the State Police task force, said Spencer's appointment can only bolster the squad's mission. "Gary Spencer brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the position as treasurer, not only from his legal background but also from his many years of public service," Biffany said in a written statement. (The Illinois State Police declined to sign a recent letter to the editor of this newspaper that praised Spencer's record. Police brass in seven area agencies signed the letter.) Spencer said he's happy to serve as treasurer for an agency he helped develop back in 1987. "I realized we had an increasing drug problem and that a special group of investigators dedicated to that area of law enforcement would be a good idea for Whiteside County," Spencer said. The task force serves Whiteside, Lee, Carroll, Henry and Jo Daviess counties.