Elmhurst Area Agency Broke Ethics Law: Records

ELMHURST, IL – The fire district that covers the unincorporated areas between Elmhurst and Bensenville advertised a campaign fundraiser for a local Republican politician, public records show.

According to the records, Paul DeMichele, the controller for Bensenville Fire District No. 1, admitted to an investigator for the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office that he used the district's stamp to promote the political event.

In Illinois, it's against the law for public bodies to help politicians' campaigns.

In July, Patch asked DeMichele just before an Elmhurst city meeting whether he was responsible for the flyer. He denied knowledge of who handled the flyer.

He also said the state's attorney's office investigated the matter and found no violation. Public documents indicate otherwise.

Through a public records request, Patch last week obtained the state's attorney's report, which was completed last April.

The flyer was in support of a September 2021 fundraiser for state Rep. Deanne Mazzochi, R-Elmhurst, who lost her bid for re-election in November.

The flyer included what appeared to be the fire district's stamp. It said Mazzochi supported efforts to keep the fire district as a separate entity. The district provides no fire service, paying two other entities to do that.

In the flyer, the fire district urged people to show their support for Mazzochi and included details about the fundraiser.

In an interview with an investigator, DeMichele acted as if he had never seen or heard about the flyer, according to the report. Then he spoke "in circles" about his and the board's knowledge, the report said.

Asked further about the flyer, DeMichele said he didn't want to say anything because it could jeopardize the district's litigation with a group of critics, the report said. (Through a public records request, Patch sought the lawsuit from the fire district; its lawyer said it had no such documents.)

Finally, DeMichele admitted to creating the political flyer, saying it was placed in mailboxes, the report said. DeMichele also acknowledged using the stamp, which he said was for official business, according to the report.

He further said he did not inform the district's board about the flyer and that he spent no public money making it.

"DeMichele stated that he is new to the political world and was unaware that he was violating any election law when he created the flyer," the report said.

DeMichele said Mazzochi and her team had no knowledge of the flyer.

The allegations of the stamp's use came from Jim Brill, a critic of the district and a member of the White Pines Community Alliance.

The report concluded that Brill's allegations relating to the misuse of government resources fell under the state's ethics law.

Patch contacted the state's attorney's spokesman, Paul Darrah, about whether prosecutors would file a charge against DeMichele. Darrah did not respond.

DeMichele has not returned numerous messages for comment.

According to the report, Paul Guerino, one of the board's three members, said he was close friends with DeMichele, but said he knew DeMichele crossed the line printing the flyer.

Guerino said he and the other board members had no knowledge of the flyer and did not support DeMichele in the incident, offering to "reel him in."

In a message to Patch, Guerino took issue with the report, saying he never acknowledged DeMichele printed the flyer.

"I said it was possible that he could have. If he printed the flyer, that was without my knowledge," he said. "The only thing that is the absolute truth (in the report) is the last sentence, 'In closing, (Guerino) stated that he knows the political flyer violates the election statute and that it was done without the board's knowledge, consent or participation.'"

Patch asked Guerino whether he had questioned DeMichele about creating the flyer. Guerino declined to answer that question, saying, "My statement above says it all. Full stop."