MARION, Ill.—Let it not be said that while we civilians have a certain amount of paranoia about the ever-increasingly-paramilitarized cops in our region who kind of make their own rules as they go along, the same isn’t happening in those cops’ minds.
Example: The pending appointment of a new police chief in Marion.
With the retirement of chief John Eibeck announced earlier this week, two names emerged as forerunners for the position: Dan Burns, and Dawn Tondini.
That’d be Dawn Cooper Tondini. As in: sister of Illinois State Police trooper Aaron Cooper. Yes, that Aaron Cooper, the one who almost single-handedly irretrievably screwed up the Molly Young case in Jackson County (her death occurred two years ago this month) and who very obviously slanted the testimony during the coroner’s jury a year ago in January. So much was made of Cooper’s part in the matter that it was reported last summer he’d been removed as an investigator and reassigned as road trooper, although that status was never confirmed, and we’re unsure of his status now (they’re keeping all involved in the Young case really low-key at this point, as her death remains unresolved).
Apparently the media scrutiny was too much for young Aaron to handle. And so when his sister’s name was announced as being in the running for the job, he reacted thusly:
Oh. Well. Info’s out, apparently. And from what we’re hearing, should Marion replace Eibeck with Tondini, it will be an “out of the frying pan, into the fire” situation. We know nothing about Tondini, nor Burns; we’re only reporting what’s being openly stated throughout town. Hopefully, we’ll have more on the situation in the upcoming print version, on stands April 16, available April 14 by e-Edition right here at the site with just a click through the links.