Amy Jacobson Sells Lake View Graystone For $938,000.

Amy Jacobson, a former reporter for WMAQ-Channel 5, has sold her Lake View graystone for $938,000. She and her husband Jamie Anglada claim they were forced to sell after she was terminated from the station following the aired of a video on CBS-owned WBBM-Channel 2 that showed Jacobson wearing a bikini at Craig Stebic’s Plainfield house – where she had been reporting on Lisa Stebic’s disappearance.

WMAQ-Channel 5 had been actively investigating the disappearance of Lisa Stebic when an anonymous source spotted Jacobson with her two children at Stebic’s residence. They were recorded taking them to Stebic’s pool, which had been refilled.

An anonymous source provided the station with videotape of her two children; however, it was never aired or published on their website until reports about it appeared in newspapers such as Chicago Tribune and Sun-Times. Later, it was edited to remove any identifiable features from it in order to preserve their clarity.

On July 10, 2007, Jacobson filed a lawsuit against CBS in Cook County Circuit Court, alleging she had been the victim of their “intentional, malicious and wrongful conduct,” including defamation of character and breach of contract. She and her attorney Kathleen Zellner claimed the network’s actions constituted an intentional, malicious and wrongful offense.

She further sought damages for intrusion on seclusion, false light, intentional infliction of emotional distress and tortious interference with a business relationship. Furthermore, she claimed a violation of Illinois Radio and Television Broadcasting Act which prevents broadcasters from making defamatory statements about private citizens without their consent.

Jacobson and her attorney are contending that the videotape violated the law because it was produced without her Fifth Amendment right of privacy protection. Furthermore, she claims the recording did not make proper use of her own camera and created an unfavorable impression for her.

In the video, Stebic and his sister Jill Webb could be seen gazing upon Jacobson from behind a fence that divided their backyards. Additionally, they sat next to her on a sofa in their living room.

Reardon reported that Stebic and Webb did not watch or speak to her or her children when they were at the pool, according to Reardon. Additionally, police learned from Reardon that Stebic had been at his home a day before the video was shot shooting fireworks into Reardons’ yard.

Amy Jacobson and her family moved to Lakeview in 1996, and the neighborhood has undergone significant transformations since then. Now there are two other NBC-owned stations nearby and Jacobson no longer works at WMAQ-Channel 5. Overall, Jacobson and her family feel a bit happier now, according to her.

Her home, a four-bedroom Lake View graystone that she purchased three years ago for $938,000, has appreciated in value by 4.2 percent since then, but she and her husband still believe they’ve got an excellent deal.

It will ultimately be up to her and her family whether she comes out ahead or not. She may have the money needed for repayment of her mortgage and to start building some savings, but much of her financial future depends on what happens with the trial.