'He Is Physically, Mentally, Verbally And Financially Abusive': Joliet Victim Proclaims

JOLIET, IL — A handful of Joliet area murder defendants have regained their freedom from Will County's judges under the SAFE-T-Act, but sometimes people accused of far less crimes are being kept in the Will County Jail for longer and indefinite periods of time.

Take the case of 50-year-old Allen Hoard III, who hails from the Chicago suburb of Brookfield. The Joliet police arrested Hoard and booked him into the Will County Jail on the morning of June 8. The Will County State's Attorney's petition to deny pretrial release for Hoard was granted on June 9, the court files show.

Now, more than two weeks later, Hoard remains incarcerated while he's charged with one crime of unlawful violation of an order of protection. His Joliet police criminal complaint indicates that Hoard was convicted in Will County in 2024 of unlawful violation of an order of protection, and even though he has been served with a 2024 order of protection in Will County, Hoard was at that same woman's house in the 100 block of Joliet's Wilcox Street on June 8.

According to the June 2024 order of protection from the 39-year-old Joliet woman, "Allen was intoxicated and was violent. I called an ambulance. They arrived with police officers. He became irate when police arrived. They tried to calm him down but were not able to and asked him to sober up."

The order of protection informed Will County's judges that "Allen threw a large tumbler and rushed towards me with his open hand palm, he hit me hard in the mouth. I went outside through the back door calling the police ... He grabbed me by my hoodie and was hitting my arm and hand to get my phone. Once he realized I was on the phone with police, he ran across the street to his friend's house."

The court records indicate that Hoard returned to her house in the 100 block of Wilcox "And I pressed charges. Allen was arrested and charged with domestic battery. There have been ongoing physical abuse that happen on a weekly basis. I have images of my injuries ... I fear for my safety. He is physically mentally verbally and financially abusive," his victim notified Will County's judges.

"He financially isolated me. I only have access to my daughters Social Security that I have to pay bills with as well."

The Will County Sheriff's deputies will bring Hoard over to the Will County Courthouse on Thursday morning for his next pretrial appearance, before Will County Judge Amy Bertani-Tomczak in Courtroom 405.