BLOOMINGTON - The McLean County clerk's office missed a required deadline to publish information about the Nov. 4 general election.

State law requires a notice of the time, date and location of the election as well other information be published in a newspaper with general circulation throughout the county at least 30 days before the election. This year's deadline was Monday.

McLean County Clerk Peggy Ann Milton said she was assured by her staff last week that all publication deadlines had been met but learned Tuesday the notice deadline had been missed.

Milton said that while the information was ready, focus in her office shifted last week to the controversy involving the constitutional convention question on the ballot.

A Cook County judge ultimately ordered state election officials to print notices telling voters to disregard some false information on the ballot regarding the question. Prior to his ruling, there was some discussion that new ballots might have to be printed.

Milton said the county was in the midst of mailing out ballots to the military and preparing ballots for printing.

"We had to determine whether we had to cease printing and sending ballots out to military," she said.

In the meantime, the deadline for publishing the notice of the election "slipped through the cracks."

Milton got the information to The Pantagraph on Tuesday and it will be published in Thursday's paper, said Loretta Vance, classified sales division director.

According to the state election code, any person who "knowingly … fails to do any act required by this code" is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor. It would have to be proved the violation was intentional.

McLean County Assistant State's Attorney Eric Ruud said he could not comment on the matter because Milton is suing State's Attorney Bill Yoder and it poses an "ethical dilemma for our office."

Milton is seeking $43,000 in legal fees she paid last year to defend herself against criminal charges. She accuses Yoder of professional negligence and breach of contract for failing to provide her with legal advice on how she could request reimbursement of legal fees.

The state's attorney's office typically would provide legal advice to county offices.