St. Charles D-303 flyer flap leads to attorney complaint

The St. Charles School District 303 teachers union filed a complaint against attorney Larry Bettag alleging he engaged in “deliberate disinformation” in a flyer circulated before the April 1 consolidated election, according to records and a news release.

St. Charles Education Association President Jennifer Adam filed the complaint Monday with the Attorney Registration and Discipline Commission, which investigates complaints against attorneys and can take disciplinary action, according to the release.

The complaint alleged that Larry Bettag “knowingly engaged in unethical and dishonest conduct related to the St. Charles Community Unit District 303 school board elections.”

Specifically, the union’s complaint is that flyers circulated by Bettag and others affiliated with Kane County Speaks “knowingly distributed hundreds, if not thousands, of flyers containing deliberate disinformation regarding educator endorsements for school board candidates.”

“There is a calculated effort in D303 to take advantage of the community’s trust in our educators, a trust we have worked so hard to build, and it is an effort that manipulates the voters in our community,” Adam said in the release. “This behavior would be wrong for any citizen, but it is especially egregious when you know it is coming from an attorney who took an oath to uphold the laws of our great state with integrity and respect.”

Bettag, of Campton Hills, is the attorney of record filed with the Illinois State Board of Elections for the political action committee People of Kane County. The flyers state they are “Paid for by the People of Kane County.”

Bettag, who is an associate of the Geneva law firm Griffin Williams McMahon and Walsh did not respond to an email seeking comment.

Bettag’s wife, Michelle Brickert, is listed in state records as the chair and treasurer of People of Kane County.

In earlier comments about the flyers, Michelle Bettag defended the wording, saying, “They don’t own the word ‘educators.‘”

“These teachers unions think they own everything,” Bettag said. “It has nothing to do with the unions. To say it is purposeful misinformation is incorrect...It’s not misinformation. It’s educators who are wanting these candidates. I do not see it as misleading or misinformation.”

Flyers were distributed on mailboxes, and on cars in the parking lots of St. Charles churches, including at St. John Neumann on March 23; at St. Patrick’s on March 16; and at Hosannah! Lutheran, according to the ARDC complaint.

Flyers were also left inside St. Patrick’s Church on March 30 and on mailboxes in the Wild Rose and Remington Glen subdivisions on March 25, according to the complaint.

The flyer in question lists Heidi J. Fairgrieve and Thomas Lentz – both incumbents – and newcomers Antonietta Berton-Nicklaus and Elias Palacios as being endorsed by D-303 educators.

Fairgrieve is the only one on the flyer the who is actually endorsed by the unions. The unions also have endorsed Kate Bell, Jenna Hancock and Kimberly Rich.

The phrase “St. Charles D303 Educators Endorse” has been used by District 303’s union coalition since 2017 on public signage and graphics, the complaint stated.

The coalition is made up of the St. Charles Education Association, Educational Support Professionals and Transportation and Maintenance.

“The flyers direct recipients to the website KaneCountySpeaks.com, which contains information and content that potentially puts student safety at risk as well as statements intended to discredit unions,” according to the complaint.

“We hope our community recognizes the gravity of this situation, and it isn’t fooled by the disinformation circulating,” Adam said in the release. “The right to vote is a privilege, especially in an election that so directly and deeply impacts our students’ lives.”