TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE?

I'd like to think if the La Grange police and fire department oficers and investigators I've come to know and trust over the years were given sole authority over the investigation of the May 19 vehicle vs. pedestrian death which claimed the life of a 30-year-old Countryside mom, they would have concluded their work weeks ago and maybe even issued actual criminal charges against the alleged offender.

It's uncanny it took so much time for state and county investigators -- only with the help of local police -- to piece together the tragic collision that left Cari Cook for dead and rendered her two children and family dog lucky survivors.

A little more than a week ago, the traffic violations of a Summit man who nearly escaped death himself when, in an admittedly almost sleepy state, he sheared off the front end of his vehicle and got pinned inside until firefighters could free him after crossing a double yellow line, were quickly determined. The case was evaluated by La Grange officers and a ticket was issued.

The 5-car crash June 11 was on the same stretch of state-controlled roadway -- the busy speed haven known as 47th Street -- as the crash that killed Cook, and less than two blocks away no less.

Maybe the involved parties in the Cook case weren't talking immediately, maybe it was hard to analyze a crash with no apparent witnesses with clear enough memories -- but maybe, just maybe -- part of the problem (i.e., the long delay) was because lead investigators were just not all that familiar with the road in question or the kinds of careless traffic activity that goes on there on an all-too-frequent, sometimes daily basis (See The Cops).

It is La Grange cops, and not state troopers or state's attorney investigators, who routinely patrol the high-accident corridor and figure out the final disposition of every other non-fatal crash on what really should be a local roadway under full local jurisdiction.

After all, local law enforcement typically know what's best and how to handle such matters both fairly and expeditiously.

Perhaps it truly did take everyone a full month to investigate the death, but it shouldn't have been La Grange Police Mike Holub who gave residents a very unrevealing update on the probe at the June 2 village safety meeting, with regular updates on what was going on with the investigation. Why not a state trooper and county prosecutor instead, with Holub at their side?

Instead of a press release issued by the local guys, perhaps someone should have hosted a press conference, if not midway through the probe, then at its culmination, so local web, print and broadcast reporters could have asked the kinds of questions that deserve answers; so the community could feel a little more at ease the wheels of government won't end up moving as slow as they seldom do on this burning issue.

Was the alleged offending driver believed to have been doing anything to possibly distract herself while crossing 8th Street? Speeding? Doing makeup? Talking or texting? Eating lunch? We may never know, but does anyone have proof if she was doing any of those things or not?

Was there excessive sunshine or dark shade affecting the vision of drivers at that hour of that day?

Why did the investigation take so long and why were criminal charges not justified in this case?

Easy questions, seemingly easy answers.

Instead we all get a statement, without all the facts and without answering many of the probing questions curious newshounds and understandably concerned neighbors and residents might have.

I have a feeling the many questions swirling around this case are from from over. Simply put, we all need to know more. And in a few days or a week. Not a month.

Why not let us know what you think???