Will/Grundy Major Crimes Task Force announces ready status

May 26

JOLIET – Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow, Grundy County State’s Attorney Sheldon Sobol and Joliet Police Chief Fred Hayes announce that the Will/Grundy Major Crimes Task Force is ready to begin operations on June 1.

The new Major Crimes Task Force, which has been in the planning stages for nearly a year, is designed to direct critical police resources toward the investigation of a major crime, such as a mass shooting or a complex murder investigation, immediately after one occurs.

Thirty-six law enforcement agencies from throughout Will and Grundy counties as well as the FBI and the Illinois State Police will contribute staff and resources to the Task Force. From these agencies, 57 law enforcement officers, 14 of whom are crime scene technicians, will lend their skills and expertise to the new Task Force.

Bill Carlisle, a veteran detective from the Will County Sheriff’s Department, was selected by the Task Force’s Executive Board to serve as the Task Force’s commander. Carlisle has served with the Sheriff’s Department since 1986. He was appointed a sergeant in 1997 and a lieutenant in 2004. He is currently a lieutenant in the Sheriff’s Department’s Investigations Division.

Lieutenant Richard Demick, a veteran detective with the Joliet Police Department, will serve as the Task Force’s assistant commander. The Task Force’s Executive Board also named five division commanders: Ken Kroll, Scott Nicodemus, Jeffrey Lockard, Steven Talmontas and Richard Kowalski.

“Our goal is to direct as many police resources as possible toward an investigation immediately after a major crime is discovered,” said Joliet Police Chief Hayes, who chairs the Task Force’s Executive Board. “The first 48 hours are critical to these investigations. Once deployed, the Task Force will able to develop and follow up on leads quickly in an effort to bring an investigation to a swift and successful conclusion.”

Recent complex murder investigations in Will County prompted State’s Attorney Glasgow to begin coordinating with local police agencies to develop the Major Crimes Task Force. He noted, for example, that the Cook County-based South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force provided invaluable assistance to the Tinley Park Police Department after five women were shot to death inside a Lane Bryant store last year.

“The work the South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force performed significantly expanded Tinley Park’s investigative capabilities and will be instrumental in bringing a dangerous killer to justice,” Glasgow said. “Launching and coordinating an investigation of such magnitude could easily overwhelm the largest police department in any jurisdiction. Our new law enforcement cooperative will place these expert resources into the hands of every police department in Will and Grundy counties.”

State’s Attorney Sobol said: “This kind of resource-sharing is necessary to enhance the ability of our law enforcement agencies to solve major crimes and to protect our citizens. This Task Force will dramatically improve the way criminal investigations are conducted in both Will and Grundy counties without creating a financial burden on any taxpayer-funded police department.”

Police chiefs in both Will and Grundy counties embraced the concept and formed an Executive Board that developed the structure and bylaws for the new Task Force, which will be funded through fees paid by participating police departments. Investigator salaries will be paid for by their own departments while they are assisting the Task Force. The Task Force, however, will provide equipment such as computers, uniforms and badges.

Participating law enforcement agencies are from Beecher, Bolingbrook, Braidwood, Channahon, Coal City, Crest Hill, Crete, Elwood, the FBI, Frankfort, the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office, the Grundy County State’s Attorney, the Illinois State Police, Joliet Junior College, Joliet, Lockport, Lockport Township, Manhattan, Minooka, Mokena, Monee, Morris, New Lenox, Peotone, Plainfield, Rockdale, Romeoville, Shorewood, Steger, Tinley Park, University Park, the Will County Coroner, the Will County Forest Preserve, the Will County Sheriff’s Office, the Will County State’s Attorney and Wilmington.