Eavesdropping case stalls

A Champaign County judge Friday put off until after the election a motion to have a special prosecutor appointed for a man charged with eavesdropping for taping a police officer's conversation. Presiding Judge Tom Difanis acceded to the wishes of Assistant State's Attorney Mick McAvoy that a hearing on a motion for a special prosecutor for Patrick Thompson be continued. Difanis set the new date for Nov. 12. "There are factual issues. It's not just a matter of law. It is complicated. It would be nice if I was ready, but I'm not," McAvoy told Difanis. The eavesdropping case against Thompson, 35, of Champaign, has been an issue in the re-election campaign of Republican State's Attorney John Piland. He's being challenged by Democrat Julia Rietz. In late September, after pressure from Champaign's police chief and city manager, Piland dismissed eavesdropping charges against Thompson's co-defendant, E. Martell Miller, 43, of Champaign. However, Piland elected not to dismiss the charges against Thompson because Thompson has a separate felony case pending. Both Miller and Thompson bill themselves as members of a citizens group that is watching and videotaping the actions of police as they interact with young people, particularly black men. They were indicted on the Class 1 felony charges Sept. 3 by a grand jury, accused of tape-recording a conversation between Champaign police officer David Griffet and a man he was interviewing sometime in June or July. An additional count was lodged against Miller for an Aug. 7 recording of police. [more ]