Joliet West HS Academy Coordinator Pleads Guilty To Shoplifting At Shorewood Target Store

JOLIET, IL — A member of the Joliet West High School administration, Maureen K. Pulaski, pleaded guilty earlier this summer to multiple crimes of retail shoplifting from the Target store in Shorewood along Route 59, Joliet Patch has learned.

Will County court documents indicate that the Shorewood Police Department arrested Pulaski, who is now 47 years old, back on March 16, 2024, at the Shorewood Target store, 1111 Brook Forest Ave. The court documents indicate that Pulaski resides in Shorewood on Nightshade Lane.

The criminal complaint from the Will County Courthouse indicates that Pulaski was charged with four separate counts of retail theft, with all four shoplifting events taking place inside the Shorewood Target store, on Feb. 11, 2024, Feb. 19, 2024, Feb. 24, 2024 and March 9, 2024.

The Shorewood woman holds a supervisory position within the administration at Joliet West High School, where she serves as the Academy Coordinator for freshman academy, according to the District 204 website.

Pulaski Is Banned From Patronizing Shorewood Target Store: Judge

According to the complaint from a Shorewood police detective, on Feb. 11, 2024, Pulaski "took various miscellaneous items from the container in which such merchandise is displayed ... with the intention of depriving the merchant of the full retail value of such merchandise. The full retail value of which did not exceed $300."

All four of last year's retail thefts outlined in the complaint are nearly identical in their wording.

Then, this summer, court files show, Pulaski returned to the Will County Courthouse, accompanied by her lawyer, retired chief judge of Will County Stephen White, who works for the Joliet-based law firm Rathbun, Cservenyak and Kozol.

As part of a plea bargain, with the Will County State's Attorney's Office, the Joliet West High School administrator pleaded guilty to her first two counts of retail theft.

According to her sentencing order, Pulaski was not taken into custody or incarcerated in connection with her crimes. Will County Judge Shenonda Tisdale sentenced Pulaski to 18 months of court supervision plus fines, fees and costs totaling $619. Additionally, Pulaski was ordered to pay $320.82 in restitution by June 9, 2026, "for the benefit or use of Target at 1111 Brookforest Ave. in Shorewood."

As another condition of her sentence, Pulaski was ordered by the Will County judge to have no contact with the Target store in Shorewood at 1111 Brookforest Ave.

Retail theft charges three and four were dismissed under the plea bargain and Pulaski was ordered to complete an anti-theft course as part of her sentence. Her case has been continued until Dec. 8, 2026, for termination of her court supervision.

Pulaski Makes More Than $120,000 Salary For Joliet West

Pulaski made a salary of $121,838 for the 2024 school year, according to District 204.

Tuesday, Aug. 19 marks the first day of class for students at Joliet West.

According to the Joliet District 204 website, "the Freshmen Academy Coordinator, Ms. Pulaski, warmly welcomes incoming freshmen students and their families to Joliet West High School. While Joliet Township High School District 204 serves over 6,600 students, our schools are designed with an academy structure to provide small schools within a large setting. All ninth-grade students enter the Freshman Academy which is specifically designed to ensure a successful transition to high school. Features of the Freshman Academy include an 8-period day where all freshmen arrive an hour earlier than their upper-class peers, and freshman classes are housed in a common wing of the school."