Judge reinstates Cainkar as Manteno’s village attorney

A Kankakee County judge ruled Thursday the removal of Manteno’s longtime village attorney was improper.The ruling reinstates Joe Cainkar as the village’s attorney and upholds the village board’s June 15 4-2 vote to retain him over the objection of Mayor Annette LaMore, who ultimately dismissed him and set off the legal action.LaMore declined comment following the ruling. Brian Miller, an attorney with the Vasselli Law Firm – the firm put in place after Cainkar’s removal – was asked after the hearing if he would attend Monday’s Manteno Village Board meeting. He said he would not.Cainkar, who was not in the courtroom Thursday, said the ruling is what he anticipated. Cainkar, 48, of Downers Grove, has provided Manteno legal counsel since late 2003. He noted Manteno was the first municipality he represented when he began practicing law.“Manteno has always been a village I’ve been close with and care a lot about,” he said. “I feel good that the judge saw what I saw.”Thursday’s hearing befor