The Kelly Miller Bros. Circus is at Lake in the Hills' Sunset Park Saturday, Sept. 12.

The 2009 season features elephants, horses, llamas, camels, clowns and more.

The public is invited to watch them raise the tent at 9 a.m. Saturday morning, and then performances are at 2 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Advanced tickets are $10 for adults and $6 for kids, and tickets at the door cost $14 for adults and $7 for children. Tickets can be purchased in advance at Castle bank East & West, Algonquin State Bank, Dominick's, and the Algonquin/Lake in the Hills Chamber of Commerce.

The Algonquin/Lake in the Hills Jaycees sponsored the circus.

The village’s 31st Citizen’s Police Academy will kick off on Sept. 14 and is looking for a few good residents.

The goal of the program is to increase the community’s awareness of what the police department does to create a better working relationship between those in uniform and the people they serve.

The 10-week academy meets on Monday nights from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., covering the myriad tasks Lake in the Hills police officers perform.

Participants must be at least 18, have no felony or misdemeanor convictions that question their moral character, be willing to commit to completing the program, and be able to handle the material, which can be graphic.

For more information, call the department’s community relations division at 847-658-5676, or visit www.lith.org/police.
 

Lake in the Hills Police are hosting a public forum Wednesday night to discuss a recent string of gang activity in the village.

The village made seven gang-related arrests in July.

Deputy Chief Mary Frake said the community meeting will focus on answering questions the public may have and outlining what the police department is doing and what options it has to deal with gang activity.

The meeting starts at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 5, at the Lake in the Hills Safety Education Center at 1109 Crystal Lake Rd.

The Lake in the Hills Youth Athletic Association will continue hosting its fourth-annual Brian Krueger Memorial Tournament through the weekend.

The event raises money to support the Midwest Children's Brain Tumor Center at Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, which helps patients with pediatric brain cancer and their families. It is held each year in memory of Brian Krueger, a former association baseball player who died at age 11 after struggling with cancer for much of his life.

"I always feel both honored and humbled by this event, which memorializes my Brian in such a wonderful way," said Brian's father, Ken Krueger, in a news release. "For these few days every year, I almost feel that Brian is out there playing baseball again through all of these enthusiastic young players."

Forty-seven baseball teams from throughout northern Illinois have been playing in the tournament since Wednesday, and will continue through Sunday. Games take place at Sunset Park and Leroy Guy Park in Lake in the Hills.

Concessions, raffle tickets, and T-shirts also will be sold.

Last year, the baseball association was able to donate a record $6,000 to the tumor center. Half of the net proceeds from the tournament will again be donated this year.

Donations in Brian Krueger's memory can also be made directly to Midwest Children's Brain Tumor Center, Lutheran General Hospital, 1675 Dempster St., Park Ridge, IL. 60068.

For more information about Krueger and this weekend's game schedules, visit www.lithyaa.org or call Tournament Director Tom Johnson at 224-333-0182.

In the land of police blotter, underage drinking charges aren't uncommon. But underage driving offenses is a bit farther and fewer in between.

Early Monday morning a 14-year-old from Huntley was driving three friends down Annandale Drive in Lake in the Hills. Not only was he two years shy of a driver's license, this young fellow hit a tree and just kept driving. Upon hearing the crash, neighbors called police to report a hit and run accident.

Hutnley Police eventually stopped the renegade driver in the 9600 block of Bennington Drive, in Huntley. He didn't go home without a nice stack of tickets, though.

LITH Police Sgt. Mark Smith said he was charged with driving without a license, leaving the scene of a property damage accident, failure to provide information after striking private property, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, improper lane use, and curfew violation.

His three friends, a 14-year-old male from Lake in the Hills, a 15-year-old male from Lake in the Hills, and a 15-year-old female from Lake in the Hills – were charged with curfew violation.

Hopefully the worst punishment came after police finished issuing tickets – when the boy was sent home with his mom.

– Diana Sroka