Idiocy+Alcohol+People Under 21=Dead Kid
By Sam Bakken in News on Feb 17, 2005 12:58AM
The big news this weekend was a fight in Kane County involving 30 to over 50 former and current students from Burlington Central and St. Charles North high schools, their friends and at least one friend's relative. Details of the fight reinforce our theory that anyone between, and including, the ages of 13 and 20 should be feared—Dem kidz gawt nuttin' ta looze. Those involved in the fight, scheduled over cell phones, allegedly brought bottles, boards, a metal house-number sign, bats, chains and stun guns to the scene and now four kids are in jail and one is dead.
Nicholas Swanson, 20-years-old, died from a blow to the back of the head from a blunt object. The coroner said this was the only injury on the body. There were no wounds on his arms or hands to suggest he was defending himself. He probably never saw it coming. Reports say Swanson's younger brother called him out of bed for help when he realized his gang was outnumbered. Nicholas didn't go to either high school. He graduated from Larkin High School in 2003. His brother had friends at Burlington Central. Some witnesses say Swanson was trying to break up the fight. Others say he was hit as soon as he stepped onto the scene. The fight may have been about a girl, or it may have just been a cock-strut.
Swanson told his mother he'd be back soon when he left that night. She said, "He was going to protect my younger son." His uncle has said, "Who are you going to call when you are in trouble? Who are you going to call if you need help? You call your brother." No, no, no, no, no. Call the police. They're trained to deal with this sort of thing. It sounds like the fight brewed for at least a little while. Apparently some of those involved left and came back with reinforcements. If only one of those kids would have called the professionals instead of their homies. Of course we're not blaming the brother.
As you can see, details are sketchy and police ran into problems when a number of the witnesses wouldn't talk or were offering conflicting versions of the story. State's Attorney John Barsanti requested a grand jury investigation and got it on Tuesday. The grand jury will allow prosecutors to subpoena witnesses, grant immunity and bring contempt of court charges. But even in a grand jury situation, witnesses are still protected by the Fifth Amendment.
Nobody has yet been charged for the murder, but four men are in jail for charges related to the incident. All four were originally brought up on mob action charges. Those charges were dropped today after Kane County Assistant State's Attorney Clint Hull said research showed the charges could prevent filing more serious charges against the men in the future.
Here's a breakdown on those charged in relation to the incident:
--David West: 18, lives in Geneva, charged with aggravated battery, a previous misdemeanor criminal trespass charge (driving past "No Trespassing" signs), a ticket just last week for possessing a small amount of marijuana, the alleged ring leader
--James Scimeca: 18, lives in St. Charles, charged with aggravated battery, West's cousin, previous felony criminal damage and underage drinking charges
--Brian Halling: 18, lives in St. Charles, charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon (a stun gun), previous underage drinking and DUI charges
--Chris Leon: 19, lives in South Elgin, charged with obstruction of justice