Local Police Reports, Park Forest

Two Charged With Felonies, Two With Mob Action: Police Blotter Reports For May 8-14, 2018


Police Chief Christopher Mannino
Park Forest Chief of Police Christopher Mannino. (Photo: Gary Kopycinski)

Park Forest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- Editor’s Note: These Park Forest Police blotter reports cover May 8 through May 14, 2018. During this reporting week, two women were charged with “mob action,” and two men were charged with felonies. The men were charged in unrelated, separate instances. The women were charged in connection with the same incident. One charge was a felony count of possession of a controlled substance, the other was one felony count of manufacturing and delivery of cannabis, 100-500 grams. 

This report brings us current on arrest reports. We have some burglary reports to process. They will come next. We are working to provide more details in reports now that we offer subscriptions. We invite you to get the whole story: please subscribe today!

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eNews Park Forest reports this information because the public in the United States has the right to know.  When that information is withheld or under-reported, it leaves questions.  We also want to show the work that the police force does every day that is not reported.  Police in Park Forest respond to thousands of calls per year, the vast majority of which do not entail arrests.  Whether it’s conducting a routine investigation, pulling over a drunk driver, or responding to a possible theft at a store, the work of the police officer deserves acknowledgement by the public.

An arrest does not mean that a person is guilty. All those arrested are presumed innocent until proven guilty. It is the policy of eNews Park Forest to not remove items in the public record from publication. If your name is listed in the police reports, we will only add information relevant to the final disposition of the case at hand, e.g. “Mr. Smith was subsequently acquitted,” “Mr. Smith entered a guilty plea,” or “All charges against Mr. Smith were subsequently dropped.” We will do so upon receiving and verifying proof of such disposition.

Persons wishing to leave anonymous information on any criminal matters including narcotics or gang activity are encouraged to call the Park Forest Police Department Investigations Division at (708) 748-1309.

Criminal Damage to Property, Resisting, Mob Action

Angel B. Gains, 25, 7841 Hoyne Ave., Chicago, was arrested on May 8 and charged with two counts of criminal damage to property, one count of resisting arrest, and one count of mob action. Ashley D. Starr, 24, 213 W. Nash St., Milwaukee, WI, was arrested on May 8 in connection with the same incident and charged with two counts of aggravated assault and one count of mob action. Both were released after securing bond, with the court date of June 14, 2018 at the Markham Courthouse.

Police responded to the first block of Apache Street on May 8 at 10:20 PM to investigate a report of a disturbance. Dispatch informed officers that the complainant said several subjects were outside with baseball bats. The alleged offenders had damaged a vehicle and were attempting to batter residents.

Five officers responded to the call.

When police arrived, an officer observed a large group of subjects in the front yard of a residence in the first block of Apache Street. Another officer observed the subjects in the front yard of that residence apparently fighting. This officer also observed a woman wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt, later identified as Ashley Starr, standing in the front yard of that residence with an aluminum bat raised in the air above her head. Ms. Starr allegedly swung the baseball bat at a juvenile, according to police.

The officer who observed this approached and ordered Ms. Starr to drop the baseball bat. Ms. Starr initially ran toward other subjects in the front yard before turning toward the officer and trying to walk past him, according to police. As the officer approached, he gave verbal commands, telling Ms. Starr to “Drop it,” referring to the bat. Ms. Starr allegedly threw the baseball bat to the group standing near her vehicle.

The officer stopped Ms. Starr by grabbing her left arm and placing her against a squad car. The officer placed her into custody.

The officer asked Ms. Starr what the fighting was about. Ms. Starr related that another woman had tried to slip her brother’s throat earlier in Chicago, according to police.

While approaching the group again, the officer observed another woman, later identified as Angel Gaines, swing another baseball bat at the vehicle parked in the driveway of the residence where the incident was occurring. Another officer approached Ms. Gaines and placed her under arrest.

Since there were children on the scene during this incident, an officer contacted the Department of Children and Family Services and filed a report.

Retail Theft

Anthony L. Anderson, 57, 350 Juniper St. #405, Park Forest, was arrested on May 10 and charged with retail theft when officers responded to a business in the first block of South Orchard Drive to investigate a report of retail theft that had just occurred.

Police received a description of the alleged offender from dispatchers and located a man matching the description walking southbound on South Orchard Drive and took him into custody, according to police. The man was identified as Anthony Anderson.

According to the report, Mr. Anderson allegedly took items from the store. Police recovered the items from Mr. Anderson, according to the report. The total recovered value of the items was $51.84, according to police. Mr. Anderson was assigned a court date of June 28, 2018, at the Markham Courthouse.

Felony Possession of a Controlled Substance

Jonathan L. Barr, 40, 26950 Butler Ct., Crete, was arrested on May 11 and charged with one felony count of possession of a controlled substance, one count of possession of cannabis over 30 grams, one count of driving while license was suspended, and issued a citation charging speeding.

Two officers were patrolling on Western Avenue at Trinity Lutheran Church, 2901 Western Avenue, when they observed a vehicle traveling 53 miles per hour in a 35 miles per hour zone, northbound on Western Avenue from Main Street, at 2:37 PM. An officer curbed the vehicle off of Western Avenue at Algonquin Street.

Police requested the driver’s license, which the driver, Jonathan Barr, immediately produced. Mr. Barr told the officer that he was heading to Walmart.

Officers returned to their squad car when dispatch advised that Mr. Barr’s license was suspended, according to police. Another officer arrived on the scene.

Police requested that Mr. Barr step out of the vehicle. Police smelled a strong odor of fresh cannabis emanating from inside the vehicle. Mr. Barr advised police that he had a medical marijuana license and that he had marijuana inside of the vehicle.

Police searched a passenger in the vehicle, and that search yielded negative results.

Officers searched the vehicle and found a loose green leafy substance and “improperly packaged brown edible objects,” inside the center console as well as a rolled blunt containing a green leafy substance, suspect cannabis, according to police. Officers weighed the cannabis. The cannabis weighed 96 grams total, according to police. Police also weighed the brown edible objects which came in at 44 grams.

An officer asked Mr. Barr what the edible objects were, and he replied that they were “edibles.” Edibles is a word commonly used to designate an indigestible product containing cannabis or THC, according to police.

Mr. Barr’s vehicle was seized and towed per local ordinance.

Police also located a clear plastic baggie containing 11 yellow pills in the front left pocket of Mr. Barr’s jeans. Mr. Barr told police that the pills were Xanax and that he had a prescription, according to police. Police were unable to locate any prescription bottles inside the vehicle.

Police also note in the report that Mr. Barr had $912.25 cash in various denominations on his person.

Mr. Barr was taken to the Park Forest Police Department and charged. He was escorted to a cell pending a felony bond hearing at 26th Street and South California Avenue.

Domestic Battery

Darius A. Sims, 39, 300 Douglas St., Park Forest, was arrested on May 12 and charged with domestic battery and issued a parole violation warrant.

Police were dispatched to the 300 block of Douglas Street at 12:25 AM in reference to a report of domestic battery. According to police, the complainant said that Darius Sims had returned home drunk after being gone for several hours. Mr. Sims appeared to be extremely intoxicated, according to the complainant, at which time she told him to leave her alone and go to sleep.

He allegedly began to argue with her and threatened that he was going to call one of his girlfriends to come over to the house and sleep with him, according to the report. The complainant told Mr. Sims that she wanted a divorce at which point he allegedly choked her by placing both hands around her throat, according to police.

She got up, ran out of the room, and Mr. Sims allegedly followed her and pushed her into the hallway, according to police.

The complainant called police while two of her children ran out the hallway after hearing the argument and stepped in between the two of them in an attempt to separate them.

After police arrived and arrested Mr. Sims, an officer discovered that Mr. Sims was currently on parole and might be in violation of his parole. The officer contacted the Illinois Department Of Corrections and apprise them of the incident. IDOC advised the officer that Mr. Sims was in violation of his parole and subsequently issued a parole violation warrant, according to police.

Felony Manufacturing and Delivery of Cannabis

Jordan A. McGinnis, 22, 162 Park St., Park Forest, was arrested on May 14 and charged with one felony count of manufacturing and delivery of cannabis, 100-500 grams. Mr. McGinnis was also issued traffic citations charging one headlight, no rear registration plate light, and operating an uninsured motor vehicle.

An officer conducting stationary radar patrol in the area of 26th Street and Western Avenue observed a vehicle driving southbound on Western Avenue approaching 26th Street that had only one working headlight and did not have a license plate light illuminated, according to police. The officer initiated a traffic stop and curbed the vehicle near the intersection of Forest Boulevard and Winslow Street.

As the driver and sole occupant of the vehicle, identified as Jordan A. McGinnis, rolled down his window, the officer detected the strong odor of cannabis emanating from inside the vehicle, according to police. Mr. McGinnis provided the officer with his Illinois driver’s license and an expired insurance card, according to police.

When asked about the odor of cannabis, Mr. McGinnis allegedly said that he was smoking earlier, according to police. The officer asked him if there was any weed in the car. Mr. McGinnis allegedly said that he did have some weed that he was going to smoke when he got home, according to police. Mr. McGinnis then opened the center console and produced a clear knotted plastic bag that contained a green plant material, suspect cannabis, inside.

The officer asked McGinnis if there was any other weed inside the vehicle and he told the officer that there was not.

Another officer arrived on the scene to assist. Police requested that Mr. McGinnis exit his vehicle. Police did not locate any contraband on Mr. McGinnis’ person.

Inside the vehicle, police found a Finding Nemo lunch bag that contained a large plastic bag which had multiple individual packaged bags inside it. These bags had a green plant material, suspect cannabis, inside. Police also located a digital scale and additional plastic bags.

The vehicle was towed from the scene and impounded.

Mr. McGinnis was placed into handcuffs and transported to the Park Forest Police Department pending further investigation. At the station, the officer who initially pulled over Mr. McGinnis weighed each bag of cannabis – the green plant material had field-tested positive for the presumptive presence of cannabis.

The cannabis had a combined weight of approximately 203.1 grams, according to police. There were 23 individually wrapped bags recovered.

Mr. McGinnis was placed in a cell pending transport to the Markham Courthouse for a felony bond hearing.


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