Winnebago County State’s Attorney Marilyn Hite Ross announced Thursday the terms of an agreement to settle a lawsuit filed by Sheriff Gary Caruana against Winnebago County, County Board Chairman Frank Haney and County Treasurer Susan Goral.
Caruana filed the lawsuit in March, asking the court to order the Winnebago County Board to restore funding to the Sheriff’s Department’s 2019 budget. A settlement was reached in July. According to a news release, the agreement requires the County Board to approve a budget amendment of $1.7 million for the Sheriff’s Department’s 2019 budget. The release says the money will be used to pay the salaries for 24 Deputies. The settlement requires that Sheriff Caruana pay for the fees of his court-appointed special prosecutor out of his 2019 budget.
According to the release, as part of the settlement, the Sheriff agreed to dismiss his lawsuit against the County, Haney and Goral.
A copy of the settlement agreement can be obtained from the Winnebago County Circuit Clerk’s Office.
