Naperville Popsicle Thief Gets Jail Sentence

A local man caught with a popsicle in his pants will face jail time for his ice cold theft.

Guy E. Hansen, 54, of Wheaton was sentenced to 114 days in the DuPage County Jail after pleading guilty to charges of misdemeanor retail theft and criminal trespassing on Wednesday.

According to the police report, Hansen entered a Jewel-Osco store on July 29 with the intent to steal some merchandise. A security officer recognized Hansen as he left the store, and upon reviewing the security video, noticed that Hansen appeared to steal a loaf of bread from the bakery area.

Hansen returned to the store a short while later and made a beeline for the daily section, where he opened a bottle of Nesquik and drank it without paying. According to Sgt. Steve Schindlbeck, “Hansen also removed several yogurts from the cooler (and placed them) into a pants pocket.”

But Hansen’s crime spree didn’t stop there. He moved to the frozen foods section in hopes of grabbing a delicious dessert. According to Schindlbeck, Hansen opened a box and removed a frozen popsicle before placing it “into a front pants pocket.” Hansen then left the store, but authorities were already in pursuit.

Police quickly located Hansen outside the store and placed him under arrest. The police report states that the value of the stolen items totaled $5.18.

Nearly four months in jail for such a minor crime may seem harsh, but as your might have guessed, this wasn’t Hansen’s first run-in with the law. Hansen was already on parole from two charges of burglary and retail theft from back in 2011. A criminal records search also revealed that Hansen has served three prison terms since 1998 for a variety of crimes including robbery, burglary, aggravated battery, retail theft and drug possession.

As part of his sentencing, Hansen has been ordered never to return to the store.

Related source: Naperville Sun

Rhode Island Man Gets 4 DUIs in 36 Hours

A Rhode Island man just set the unofficial record for most DUIs in a 36-hour span, racking up four drunk driving arrests in a day and a half.

The whole ordeal for John Lourenco, 53, began Sunday afternoon when his Dodge pickup collided with a family’s SUV, injuring a 4-year-old and 6-year-old in the other vehicle. The children received treatment and were released from a local hospital, and Lourenco was booked for driving under the influence after failing a field sobriety test.

According to the police report, Lourenco became hostile with officers and hospital staff while being treated for minor injuries. He allegedly threatened an officer and threw a bottle of urine at a nurse. He was released after being given a summons to appear in court on the drunk driving charge.

But Mr. Lourenco’s poor choices didn’t stop there. Bright an early Monday morning Lourenco was back behind the wheel, this time driving a Chevy Sedan. Police responded to a report of a traffic accident around 7 a.m. and found that Lourenco had hit another car. He blew a 0.220, nearly three times the legal limit, when given a Breathalyzer at the scene. He was charged with drunk driving and released to his parents.

Again, Lourenco failed to learn his lesson. Around 11 a.m. an officer noticed a Plymouth Barracuda driving erratically down the road. The officer stopped the vehicle and once again found Lourenco behind the wheel. Lourenco was arrested and taken to the hospital, where he was released to their custody. Lourenco was released from the hospital after having his blood drawn.

Sadly, just a few hours later, Lourenco again made the poor choice to get behind the wheel. He was driving a dump truck when he crashed into a tree around 5 p.m. Monday night. Lourenco was again booked on suspicion of driving under the influence, but this time the police kept him in custody after the hospital drew his blood. He was scheduled to remain in police custody until his September 24 court date, but he was released Tuesday on $25,000 surety bail.

In addition to the four drunk driving charges, Lourenco also faces charges of:

• Reckless driving

• Refusing a Breathalyzer

• Failure to provide insurance

Brett Appelman comments

Sometimes a story provides more questions than answers, and that’s how I feel after reading this piece. Why did it take four arrests for the police to keep Lourenco in custody? Where did he need to get to so urgently? How they heck did he have access to three cars and a dump truck?

This is simply one of the stranger DUI stories I’ve ever read.

Related source: The Providence Journal

Illinois Lawmakers Push For Police Body Cameras

Two Illinois lawmakers proposed a bill on Thursday that would help fund police body cameras by adding a $6 surcharge to all criminal and traffic citations.

The bill was introduced by State Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth and is sponsored by Senator Bill Haine, both members of the Democratic Party. According to Gordon-Booth, the bill would allow police departments to apply for grants to buy body cameras and video equipment for their squad car. The grant money would be funded by the taxpayers, but only by those who earn a criminal or traffic citation. Gordon-Booth said a $6 surcharge fee on criminal and traffic offenses would raise between $4 million and $6 million annually.

“[The body cameras would] remove controversies and remove doubt on what’s going on with a lawful arrest,” said Senator Haine.

Police body cameras have been a hot topic in the wake of the events in Ferguson, Missouri. In that instance, an 18-year old unarmed black teenager was fatally shot by a white police officer. Racial tensions erupted, but nobody has been able to provide clear evidence of what transpired right before the fatal shots were fired. Had the officer been wearing a body camera, the matter would likely be settled. Since then, some officers in Ferguson have begun wearing body cameras, and now Illinois is looking to follow suit.

The Benefits of Body Cameras

The benefits of police body cameras are two-fold. First, they keep officers and civilians on their best behavior. If police and anyone they encounter know their actions are being filmed, everyone will act more civil. True cases of police brutality and excessive force will be recorded for the world to see.

Also, body cameras will help keep officers and their departments safe from frivolous lawsuits. Considering the city of Chicago paid out $84.6 million last year in legal fees and misconduct payouts, and the decade total tops half a billion dollars, the cameras could easily end up paying for themselves.

Criminal defense attorney Brett Appelman said he’d like to see police wear body cameras.

“So often in a court of law it comes down to a ‘he said, she said’ argument,” said Appelman. “With body cameras, we would have an unbiased, third-person view of exactly what transpired. It seems like a no-brainer to me.”

Related source: STL Today

We’ve Moved!

These past few weeks have been rather hectic, but we’re excited to announce that we’ve moved office locations!

Although we’re technically going from Naperville to Aurora, we’re less than five miles away from our old office, so we’re staying in touch with the local community. Our new address is:

 Appelman & Associates LLC                                                                                            75 Executive Drive Suite 343                                                                                    Aurora, IL 60504

For those of you familiar with the area, you’ll realize that puts us near the Fox Valley Mall in Aurora. Check out the picture below for a Google Street view of our new office location.

Also, in case your were wondering, our phone number and fax number remain the same. You can still contact us by phone by calling 630-717-7801 or by sending us a fax at 630-689-5796.

As with any move, please excuse us while we settle into our new location. We’re currently unpacking boxes, moving desks, taking new company pictures and updating all our contact information on our website and on social media. If you have any questions about the move or you need directions to our new location, don’t hesitate to ask. Thanks for being patient with us in the coming weeks, and we can’t wait to keep defending your rights at our new office in Aurora!