Crimo's Father Sponsored Son's FOID Card Application: IL State Police

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — The father of the man charged in the July 4 parade mass shooting in Highland Park co-signed a permit request for his son to purchase guns, despite the Illinois State Police receiving a clear and present danger report after Bobby Crimo III had threatened his family in 2019, according to authorities.

Crimo was charged with seven counts of first-degree murder on Tuesday night, a day after he was arrested in connection with the deadly mass shooting that killed seven people and injured two dozen more at Monday’s Highland Park July 4 parade.

7th Parade Victim IDed, No Bond For Crimo

Police said Tuesday that Crimo was able to legally purchase five guns, including the high-powered rifle that police said Crimo used to fire off about 70 shots during Monday’s parade. Crimo was issued a FOID card in 2020 despite the fact that police said they were called to his home for a report he had threatened to "kill everyone."

Police said that they removed 16 knives, a dagger, and a sword from his home after the incident. However, because no one pressed charges in the incident, the Lake County state’s attorney said there was no probable cause to charge Crimo with any crimes.

At the time of the incident, the Illinois State Police said that no one — including family — was willing to move forward with a complaint nor did they subsequently provide information on threats or mental illness that would have allowed law enforcement to take further action, the state police said in a news release.

However, the state police said they received a “clear and present danger” report stemming from the incident. At the time, the state police said that there was no FOID card application to deny, and the state police considered the matter closed, officials said.

In December 2019, however, Crimo applied for a FOID card, according to police. Because he was under 21, however, his application for the FOID card was sponsored by his father, state police said Tuesday.

Because he has not been charged and no complaints about Crimo’s mental health had been made regarding the 2019 incident, “there was insufficient basis to establish a clear and present danger and deny the FOID application,” state police said Tuesday.

State Police officials said Tuesday night that they looked into the criminal background of Crimo and found that he had passed four background checks in 2020 when he purchased guns. The background checks were completed on June 9, July 18, July 31 and Sept. 20, police said.

Evidence Was Insufficient To Deny FOID Card To Crimo, State Police Say

The only criminal offense linked to Crimo was an ordinance violation from January 2016 that was linked to tobacco possession, police said Tuesday.

Prosecutors declined to say whether anyone other than Crimo could be charged in connection to Monday’s mass shooting. When asked specifically if his father could face charges because he sponsored his son’s FOID card application, Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said he would not get into specifics.

"I'm absolutely not going to get into that level of detail," Rinehart said at a news conference on Tuesday evening.

Rinehart said that Crimo could face “dozens” more charges in addition to the seven counts of first-degree murder he faces. U.S. Attorney for the Northern Illinois District John Lausch called the state charges “appropriate” and would not say whether Crimo could face federal charges.