Suit filed in St. Clair County seeks production of Treasurer's surety bonds

The law firm pursuing a bid rigging class action suit against St. Clair County, its Treasurer Charles Suarez and others in federal court, has filed suit in state court seeking production of the Treasurer's surety bonds.

Reinert Weishaar and Associates sued Oct. 21 claiming the County has failed to comply with a Freedom of Information Act request that asked for copies of the bonds issued on behalf Suarez.

The bonds could potentially allow members of the proposed class to recover their damages.

The lawsuit at federal court alleges that Suarez illegally rigged bids at sales of delinquent taxes to enrich Democratic campaign contributors.

Two couples sued Suarez and tax buyers in federal court on Oct. 17, alleging a conspiracy like one that sent former Madison County treasurer Fred Bathon to prison.

John Bloyer Jr., Adrianne Bloyer, Kevin Dvorak and Kathleen Dvorak, all of O’Fallon, claim the conspirators artificially inflated the interest rate at tax sales in 2007 and 2008.

The Bloyers' and Dvoraks' case initially had been assigned to Senior U.S. District Judge Phil Gilbert. But on Oct. 21, Gilbert transferred the case to the court clerk for reassignment. It was reassigned to U.S. District Judge Staci Yandle the same day.

The lawsuit filed at St. Clair County seeking production of the surety bonds from 2004 to the present, claims that attorney Aaron Weishaar was twice told by the County's FOIA officer Sean Murley that the County had complied with the request and produced the documents.

Weishaar, however, states that the documents produced by Murley were not the ones sought in the FOIA request.

In addition to seeking production of the bonds, the suit asks for penalties to be assessed for the County's alleged failure to comply with the FOIA request and for fees and costs of bringing suit.

St. Clair County case number 14-AR-1148