OFFICE OF THE ILLINOIS ATTORNEY GENERAL
Investigation of the Joliet Police Department
2024
Message from the Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul
The report on this website details the findings of a three-year investigation of the Joliet Police Department (JPD). Based on our investigation, the Office of the Illinois Attorney General has reasonable cause to believe that JPD engages in a pattern or practice of conduct that deprives people of their rights under the Constitution, federal law, and state law. Specifically:
- JPD uses unreasonable force, including tasers, head strikes, and other types of force, in violation of the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
JPD’s inadequate crisis intervention response system contributes to a pattern of unreasonable force against people with behavioral health disabilities in violation of the Fourth Amendment.- JPD’s policing practices discriminate against Black people and raise concerns that JPD also discriminates against Latino people in violation of the Illinois Human Rights Act (IHRA) and the Illinois Civil Rights Act (ICRA).
- JPD’s response to sexual assault is discriminatory against women, and its response to domestic violence raises serious concerns of discrimination against women in violation of the IHRA and ICRA.
- Failures in JPD’s accountability systems have directly contributed to these patterns of unconstitutional and unlawful policing.
- Deficiencies in JPD’s policies, training, supervision, data collection, and record-keeping practices have also contributed to these problems and enabled them to persist.
These practices have violated people’s rights under the law and eroded community trust in JPD.
Executive Summary
On September 8, 2021, the Office of the Illinois Attorney General formally opened a civil pattern or practice investigation into the Joliet Police Department (JPD). The investigation focused on the Department as a whole, rather than on a single incident or officer. From the beginning, JPD and the City of Joliet have cooperated and provided access to their files, data, and staff. We recognize that many JPD officers serve their community with professionalism, dedication, and courage. However, our investigation uncovered persistent problems that have continued unchecked over the years.
A catalyst of our investigation was the January 2020 death in custody of Eric Lurry, a 37-year-old Black man, who died after losing consciousness in a JPD squad car during a narcotics surveillance operation. Upon arrival at the JPD station, a JPD sergeant slapped Mr. Lurry in the face and pinched his nose shut for nearly 90 seconds while another officer inserted a baton in his mouth and removed several clear baggies. Officers pulled an unresponsive Mr. Lurry out of the squad car and began CPR. Paramedics arrived and transported Mr. Lurry to a local hospital, where he died ten hours later. In June 2020, a JPD sergeant leaked a video of the incident, prompting Joliet’s then-mayor Robert O'Dekirk and several city council members to request that our office investigate Mr. Lurry’s death and JPD’s handling of the incident.