Election Profile: Kelly Liebmann For McHenry Co. Coroner

The 2020 election is heating up in Illinois with plenty of candidates vying for office. While there is a huge emphasis on the presidential election, voters will also decide the outcome of state representative and senate seats as well as make their pick for county races.

Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

Kelly Liebmann of Wonder Lake is running for McHenry County coroner.

Age (as of Election Day): 43

Town/City of Residence: Wonder Lake

Office Sought: County office

Party Affiliation: Libertarian

Family: Adam Liebmann, 42 happily married for 17 years.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?: No

Education: Associate's Degree

Occupation: Director, North American Logistics for 12 years

Campaign website: www.facebook.com/KellyLiebmann...

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office: Current Greenwood Township Trustee

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The most pressing issue facing coroner’s office is the referendum on the November ballot asking voters if our currently elected coroner should be abolished and converted to an appointed corner position.

Think about the committee appointments Speaker of the House Mike Madigan decides for the Illinois House of Representatives. Do you think members of the Illinois General Assembly are vulnerable to political pressure and intimidation with regards to those appointments? Of course! Our representatives can and will lose committee appointments (their jobs) and campaign funding (their income) if they disobey Madigan. This is precisely the concern if voters decide to eliminate the elected coroner position.

For more than a year and a half McHenry County has been without a coroner because of politics and fighting between Chairman Franks and board members.

If the referendum passes, the appointed coroner will no longer be elected by voters or be accountable to residents and taxpayers. Voters will never be able vote out a derelict appointed coroner. The appointed corner will be selected by bureaucrats and politicians already entrenched in government.

I urge residents to vote NO to an appointed coroner and keep an elected coroner.

Do you support Black Lives Matter and what are your thoughts on the demonstrations held since the death of George Floyd and the shooting of Jacob Blake?

I grew up in Kenosha County and I wholeheartedly believe in our constitutional right to protest peacefully. The protests from past which were inflamed again this May are very different from the recent rioting, looting, and killing that is happening in cities and towns across the country.

Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner and countless others deserve an impartial and independent investigation to determine the cause and manner of death. The coroner should, without a doubt, remain independently elected by voters.

What are your thoughts on the campaign to "defund" the police?

Campaigns to defund the police are naive at best. I understand slogans sound great, but for meaningful change to occur, clear goals need to be set. We need to challenge our current Republican and Democratic legislators to enact laws to advance those goals, not use sound bites for political gain during election season.

What are your thoughts on the state and national response to the coronavirus pandemic? Do you favor such measures as limiting operation of non-essential businesses or restricting indoor/outdoor dining? And do you favor a nationwide mask mandate?

Our nation and state’s response to the coronavirus has been embarrassing, because one again Republicans and Democrats continue to point the blame on one another.

Sick people should never have been sent to nursing homes. The federal government should have worked in conjunction with states. Our own governor touted staying “safe at home,” but his family went to Florida and he traveled out of state for personal reasons on numerous occasions.

Symptoms of depression and anxiety are more than three times higher than just six months ago and relapse rates for drug addicts have gone up thirty percent. A recent study focused on the results of X-rays has found a rise in domestic violence since the lock down. During the beginning of September the Crystal Lake Police Department responded to three suicide attempts in three days.

The unconstitutional forced closures of businesses and sheltering at home will have unpredictable and unintended consequences far greater and for far longer than we currently understand or can attempt to predict.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

Both my opponent and I are capable to perform the duties of coroner in very different and unique ways. When you read or listen to me discussing the coroner's position, you will notice I talk about others and why the coroner has a duty to residents; this stems from my training in Police Science and desire to serve.

My education in criminal and civil law differentiates me from my opponent. I understand the importance of the chain of custody and evidence handling which was one glaring deficiency the 2019 audit of the coroner’s office revealed.

I pledge not to join IMRF (pension plan) potentially saving taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars in future benefit payments to an appointed coroner. My opponent joined IMRF when he was a part-time county board member and any claims or promises from him regarding not taking the pension benefit are disingenuous.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

The same administration and politicians that have cut the general fund budget of the coroner’s office 18% from 2015 to 2019 are the people promoting the position that the coroner’s office is “broken.”

The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office “2019 Coroner’s Report” explained their audit of the coroner’s office and addressed major deficiencies of which many have been rectified. The report also described an office with such large workloads for its employees that training of deputy coroners had been neglected.

Our current county board chairman refused the previous Coroner Majewski’s requests to have items added to county board agendas for discussion or approval. Coroner Majewski’s only avenue to report to the county board was during three-minute public comment.

The coroner’s office is not broken. I believe the coroner’s office has been neglected and it has been neglected for political purposes.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform

There is a check and balance system between the coroner, sheriff, and state’s attorney offices and all three need to remain elected and independent to ensure due process throughout a death investigation and any subsequent arrests or criminal charges.

In 2015, Fox Lake Police Department Lt. Gliniewicz implicated two white men and a black man in his elaborately staged homicide. A retired Chicago police officer was charged with disorderly conduct after he began calling police agencies and media outlets insisting that Gliniewicz had shot himself intentionally. It was Lake County Coroner Rudd who concluded Gliniewicz committed suicide much to the chagrin of the chief of police.

Coroner Rudd was criticized for supposedly jeopardizing the investigation. Because the coroner’s office is independent from the police agency, Coroner Rudd’s opinion was not silenced and the suicide and unlawful actions of a police officer could not be covered up.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I currently serve as Greenwood Township Trustee, Treasurer for the McHenry County Libertarian Party, and Illinois Logistics Director for the Jo Jorgensen for President campaign. I have a twenty plus year background in management and over a decade of experience in administration. I have made thousands of phone calls, managed and coordinated hundreds of people, under multiple projects in numerous countries, over the course of months to succeed at in my current position. I am ready for the challenges of the duties of elected coroner.

If you win this position, what accomplishment would make your term in office as a success?

The coroner’s office must plan and prepare for a significate increase in deaths from the long-term effects of the coronavirus, closure of businesses and an impending economic depression. I will work toward a solution for the ever-increasing pressures of growing caseload forced upon our deputy coroners.

Why should voters trust you?

I have already brought matters of grave concern to the board and meaningful changes were made as a direct result of my actions. Two of my friends were killed in a motorcycle accident at River Road and Charles J Miller Road on April 9th, 2017. While Dennis and Tanya’s family and many friends were distraught with grief and anger, I went to action. I am a long-time resident of McHenry County and was aware the intersection had been reconfigured a few years earlier.

Because of my perseverance, McHenry Division of Transportation changed the traffic signal pattern at the intersection. Since the reconfiguration, only three crashes with injuries have occurred at the intersection and thankfully no other deaths have occurred. My dedication has saved countless residents from injury or death, and I will continue to make that a priority if chosen to serve as your elected coroner.

What are your views on fiscal policy, government spending and the use of taxpayer dollars in the office you are seeking?

Lack of adequate resources and sound policies will constrain even the most dedicated and talented employees. Access to medical and technological advancements are critical to ensuring the reliability of investigations and the application of best practices.

I was disappointed to learn 2015 was the last time capital outlay was budgeted for the coroner’s office. Instead of allotting coroner’s fund monies for the purchase of electronic and forensic identification equipment, the coroner’s fund has been covering reductions in appropriations to the coroner’s office from the general fund.

Is there any reason you would not serve your full term of office, other than those of health or family?

I am 43 years old and not near retirement age, I fully intend to serve a full term. There is no reason why I would not serve a full term.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

A great leader will see someone else’s strength as a compliment to your weakness, not as a threat to your position or authority.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

One legal requirement of an elected coroner is they must reside in the county in which they serve. An elected coroner is a member of our community, familiar with the county, its cities and farms, roads, roundabouts, and traffic. When a resident needs consoling, it is the elected coroner they can call, not an unknown appointed bureaucrat living outside McHenry County. With no residency requirement, an appointed coroner would have little motivation to keep their budget flat or reduce spending to alleviate county property taxes.

Vote NO to an appointed coroner.