La Grange Eviction Fight May Be Over

LA GRANGE, IL – The battle to evict people from a La Grange house with alleged drug parties and prostitution may be over, with keys expected to be handed over.

Meanwhile, a Cook County judge questioned the local police department's handling of the matter.

During a court hearing Tuesday morning, an attorney for the former owner, Paul Nutting, promised to hand keys to the new owner of 812 S. Catherine Ave. at 5 p.m. Tuesday.

Judge Nicole Castillo suggested La Grange police be on hand, given that it appears "not to be a friendly transfer."

The lawyers for both sides agreed.

The company bought the house last year through a foreclosure. Paul Nutting, a 52-year-old who was among those arrested, no longer owns the house.

Late last month, though, attorneys said "unknown occupants" still lived here. The question was whether they were squatters.

"If there are no oral leases, I'm not sure why La Grange police aren't going in and arresting these people for trespass," Castillo said during the brief hearing.

She told Nutting's lawyer, Michael Vines, "If you do not have keys, it will be a trial on Friday."

Patch left a message for comment with La Grange's village manager, Jack Knight, for a response to the judge's comment.

The Catherine Avenue house has frustrated neighbors. In late October, police arrested seven people during a raid.

Four, including Nutting, were charged with felonies involving drugs.

But a Cook County judge dropped three of the four felony cases, including Nutting's, after a La Grange officer failed to show up to a court hearing, a development that upset neighbors.