Will Co. Sheriff's Deputy Faces DUI Charges After Off-Duty Wreck

HOMER GLEN —A Will County Sheriff's deputy who just turned 27 years old last week is facing criminal charges of driving under the influence after being involved in an off-duty crash in mid-March, Joliet Patch has learned.

The deputy, Michael Franc, refused to sign the DUI citation given to him by an Illinois State Police sergeant, documents at the Will County Courthouse show.

Franc, who lives in Lockport, also did not have his driver's license with him at the time he refused to submit chemical tests, the Illinois State Police report noted.

According to court documents, the Illinois State Police responded to a property damage crash involving Franc during the early morning hours of March 14. Court records indicate Franc had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his breath and he had bloodshot, glassy eyes and "driver failed all tests and refused PBT," which is the preliminary breath test.

On Tuesday, Will County Sheriff's spokeswoman Kathy Hoffmeyer told Joliet Patch that her agency is aware of Franc's arrest on DUI charges.

She said the Illinois State Police arrested one of our off-duty sheriff’s deputies on March 14. Shortly after the arrest, administrators from the Will County Sheriff’s Office were notified.

The arrest was made as a result of an accident on 159th Street near S. Messenger Circle in Homer Glen.

"The deputy has been stripped of his police powers and placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of an investigation being conducted by the Sheriff’s Office Internal Affairs Unit," Hoffmeyer noted.

As for Franc, he has retained long-time Joliet criminal defense lawyer Ted Hammel, who specializes in DUI cases. In late March, Hammel filed a petition asking that Will County's judges rescind the statutory summary suspension/revocation for Franc.

According to Hammel's filing, signed by his client:

• Franc was not properly placed under arrest for DUI
• "The arresting officer did not have reasonable grounds to believe that I was driving or in actual physical control of a motor vehicle upon a public highway while under the influence of alcohol;" the motor vehicle accident in question did not result in death or personal injury;
• "I was not properly warned by the arresting officer" and "I did not refuse to submit to and or complete the required chemical test or tests ... I submitted to the requested test or tests, but the sample did not indicate a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more ..."

On the other hand, the Illinois State Police sergeant's report of Franc's arrest checked the box indicating "Because you refused to submit or failed to complete testing, your driving privileges will be suspended for a minimum of 12 months."

According to court records, Franc's case is set for arraignment, pretrial and setting of the hearing on the petition to rescind the statutory suspension/revocation on May 14 in Courtroom 302.