Law and Order, Local Police Reports, Park Forest

Park Forest Police Blotter Reports for Sept. 11 through Sept. 17, 2019


Community Engagement Coordinator Rachel Wax and Records Clerk Brittani Barnett at Park Forest Police Department's new applicant orientation.
Community Engagement Coordinator Rachel Wax and Records Clerk Brittani Barnett are check-in applicants at Freedom Hall for the Park Forest Police Department’s new applicant orientation on October 15, 2019. (Photo: PFPD)

Park Forest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- These reports are a batch that we received later than usual. Police first accidentally sent us reports for the exact same week in 2018, September 11-19. It happens. Same exact dates, different year. Plus, there was that week or so when Village email was down.

So, to report and preserve the record for the public, we offer these now. This should take care of all “back-issued” reports as we work to catch up.

This week of Sept. 11 through Sept. 19, 2019, was a relatively busy week for police. Two men were charged with felonies in separate incidents.

Providing more details than readers will find in any other police beat reports, we invite readers to subscribe to get the whole story, every day.

eNews Park Forest has always published addresses of those arrested and will continue to do so. 5 ILCS 140/2.15 states that the governmental body (for these reports, the Police Department), shall release information on those who have been charged, including their name, age, and address. This information is necessary to ensure the proper identity of those arrested.

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 DepartmentInvestigations Division at (708) 748-1309.

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 end up with 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 acknowledgment by the public.

Possession of Cannabis: No Arrest

Jmahy A. Primm, 20, 1217 Rudolph St., Calumet City, received local ordinance citations on September 11 charging possession of cannabis and open liquor after police responded to a business and the 400 block of Sock Trail to investigate a report of a disturbance “which was later determined to be a domestic dispute,” according to police. Mr. Primm was issued the citations on-site, according to the report.

Domestic Battery

Gerald E. Turner III, 32, 301 Osage St., Park Forest, was arrested on September 15 and charged with domestic battery and interfering with the reporting of a domestic battery after police responded to the 300 block of Osage Street at 2:12 AM in reference to a report of a domestic disturbance in progress.

When police arrived, they were informed that a man allegedly involved, later identified as Gerald E. Turner, had fled the scene on foot, according to police.

According to the report, Mr. Turner arrived at that address at approximately 2 AM and woke up the complainant, allegedly shaking her and yelling at her demanding money for someone who gave him a ride home. The complainant refused. At this point, Mr. Turner allegedly went “into a fit of rage and he began throwing things around the house and deliberately knocking furniture over,” according to police. The complainant tried to call police on her cell phone and Mr. Turner allegedly grabbed the phone away from her “outside of the house, causing the screen to break,” according to the report.

The complainant went outside to get her phone and then inside again to try and call the police. Mr. Turner followed her out of the house and when she reentered the house she tried to lock him out and he allegedly kicked the door which swung open and hit her on the right side of the face, according to police.

Police located Mr. Turner walking southbound on Western Avenue toward Monee Road, according to the report.

Felony Aggravated Fleeing or Attempting to Elude a Peace Officer

Heance S. Lenton, 37, 3170 Buck Brand Road, Conyers, GA, was arrested on September 15 and charged with one count of felony aggravated fleeing or attempting to elude of a peace officer (Class 4), as well as no lighted tail lamps, disobeying a traffic control signal, disobeying a stop sign, and driving while license was suspended.

Mr. Lenton was also issued municipal citations charging possession of cannabis.

An officer in a squad car was stopped facing east on Monee Road at the intersection of Monee Road and Western Avenue at approximately 7:36 PM when he observed a red 2019 Jeep Cherokee in the lane next to him. The vehicle did not have any red tail lamps illuminated, according to police.

The officer got behind the vehicle and followed it as it turned south onto Western Avenue. The officer activated his squad’s emergency lights and initiated a traffic stop near the intersection of Western Avenue and Steger Road. The vehicle began to slow down but continued south on Western Avenue past Steger Road, according to police. The vehicle activated its right turn signal as if it was going to turn into the vacant lot in the 23400 block of Western Avenue. The vehicle then activated its left turn signal and entered the left turn lane in the 23400 block of Western Avenue as if it was going to turn into the parking lot of Aunt Martha’s.

Instead, the vehicle allegedly made a U-turn and proceeded north on Western Avenue. The officer believed that the driver of the Jeep was trying to flee and elude so the officer notified SouthCom Dispatch that the driver of the vehicle was allegedly refusing to stop and activated his squad’s siren. The Jeep did not stop and continue north on Western Avenue where it allegedly disobeyed the illuminated red traffic control signal at Western Avenue and Steger Road, according to police.

The vehicle turned west onto Monee Road and did not stop despite the “visual and audible signals” coming from the officer’s squad vehicle, according to police — the siren and flashing lights.

At the intersection of Monee Road and Ottawa Street, the Jeep slowed down but failed to completely stop at the posted stop sign, according to police.

The Jeep continued west on Monee Road and ultimately came to a stop on the right shoulder of the roadway in the first block of Monee Road, according to police.

Another officer arrived on the scene to assist.

The officer who first pursued the vehicle exited his squad car and removed his department-issued Glock 22 handgun from its holster, pointing the handgun toward the driver, later identified as Heance S. Lenton. The officer instructed Mr. Lenton to put his hands up. The officer ordered Mr. Lenton to exit the vehicle and then placed Mr. Lenton in handcuffs.

Mr. Lenton allegedly told police that he did not have a driver’s license because it was suspended, according to police. The first officer conducted a LEADS inquiry through SouthCom Dispatch and confirmed that Mr. Lenton’s driving privileges were currently suspended in Georgia.

Mr. Lenton’s vehicle was towed from the scene and an administrative seizure was placed on it.

Felony Driving While License Revoked

Freddie L. White, 37, 22511 Arquilla Dr., Richton Park, was arrested on September 17 and charged with felony driving while license was revoked and also issued traffic citations charging disobeying a stop sign, expired registration, and no proof of insurance.

An officer on patrol at approximately 12:31 AM saw a black 2007 Cadillac Escalade that had an expired temporary registration, according to police. The vehicle was traveling north on Park Street and allegedly failed to stop at the stop sign at the intersection with Westwood Drive, according to police.

The vehicle turned west on Westwood Drive. The officer got behind the vehicle and, “without losing sight of it,” according to the report, curbed the vehicle near the intersection of Westwood Drive and Orchard Drive, according to police.

The officer made contact with the driver and sole occupant who was identified as Freddie L. White. Before the officer identified himself, Mr. White allegedly told the officer that he was not supposed to be driving, according to the report.

The arresting officer learned through a law-enforcement database that Mr. White’s driver’s license was revoked because of a DUI, according to police. Mr. White was also unable to produce valid insurance for the vehicle, according to police.

Another officer arrived on the scene and police took Mr. White into custody. Mr. White’s vehicle was towed and seized in accordance with Village ordinance, according to the police.


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