Semaj Crosby Tragedy 8 Years Later: Will County Sheriff Investigation Takes New Turn

JOLIET, IL — The Will County Sheriff's Office criminal investigation unit is taking a new approach in regard to bringing justice to little Semaj Crosby, the 16-month-old toddler found dead underneath her family's couch on Louis Road in Joliet Township eight years ago this past week.

Lt. Nat Freeman, who now oversees the criminal investigation unit, told Joliet Patch during an interview on Thursday that his agency is now undertaking a full case review of Semaj's death. Her death, ruled a homicide in 2017, remains unsolved.

"We're doing a full review of evidence and people surrounding the case and anything else," Freeman told Patch. "Since it's happened, we've attempted to talk to the only four people that we believe last saw her alive ... but they have either invoked their right to an attorney or they declined to speak to us."

Despite the roadblocks that Will County Sheriff's investigators have encountered, Freeman assured Joliet Patch that his agency plans to spend a significant amount of time this year re-investigating Semaj's death.

"It's a case that means a lot to this agency," Freeman remarked. "And I think everybody here wants to see it resolved, the public and the family."

During Thursday's interview, Will County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Dan Jungles said that "other than Sarah Avon, this was the biggest case we've wanted to solve because children are involved. One of those people know that Semaj did not end up under that couch by herself," Jungles said.

Semaj's case is now in the hands of Will County Detective Sgt. Mike Earnest, who has spearheaded numerous high-profile cold case investigations at the sheriff's office in recent years, including the Sarah Avon disappearance from 1981.

Earnest's reinvestigation determined that Billy Redden, a relative of Sarah Avon who lived in her neighborhood and had an extensive criminal history of abusing children, most likely abducted Sarah and hid her body. Redden died more than a decade ago.

With Avon's case, Sgt. Earnest undertook an exhaustive in-depth case review, re-interviewing countless people. That's what he's in the process of doing now with Semaj's case.

"It draws personnel, but we hope it may shed new light and find something that was not apparent before, and also a review of the evidence that we have that can be retested with the technology we have now," Freeman explained.

"The technology from then to now is vastly different," Jungles spoke up.

How long will the Semaj full case review take?

"We hope to get it done this year," Freeman said. "It could take weeks or several months. The length of time is also due to the testing of evidence and lab times."

"When we do these reviews, it's to get a more complete review, and it's to get a fresh set of eyes on the case," Freeman said. "Did they move? Are they still a family? As time progresses, sometimes people's conscience, their age and circumstances sometimes cause them to come forward with new information about the case."

In addition to Sgt. Earnest and other detectives, Will County's cold case review of Semaj's death consists of a civilian employee who works as an analyst at the sheriff's office plus a senior-level, high-performing criminal justice student at Lewis University, Freeman said.

"Someone who's not a police officer will look at a case with a different mindset and point of view than a police officer. A lot of times they'll pick up inconsistencies and patterns that may not have registered," Freeman said. "Our cold case program has been super successful since we started it four or five years ago. Sgt. Earnest has closed some cold cases that they could have charged if the offender was still alive."

One of the biggest obstacles facing Will County Sheriff's investigators is the fact that Semaj's house burned to the ground within days of her body being found on April 27, 2017. Sheriff's officials said the fire was set by an arsonist, who they believe to be a male. "Because the house burned down, that really hindered our investigation," Jungles explained.

After Semaj died, Jungles and Freeman theorize, at least two people had to be involved in hiding Semaj's body under the couch on Louis Road because the couch weighed about 110 pounds.

In defense of sheriff's investigators and the FBI special agents investigating Semaj as a missing persons case, Jungles said the police did not have probable cause to go inside the house on Louis Road at the time Semaj was reported missing. Witnesses from around the neighborhood claimed they had last seen Semaj outside, and they directed police away from the house, Freeman explained.

Ordinarily, when police are called out to find missing children, they are checking under a bed, attic, crawl spaces, inside the washing machine "and bodies of water. We had dive teams out at a pond down the street, right near Semaj's house," Jungles explained.

"That was one of the reasons why we had to go on consent," Jungles pointed out. "And that's another fact that a lot of people don't understand. We had no probable cause to be in the house. We had to get consent. We want justice, but we want justice the right way."

The couch legs where Semaj's body was hidden underneath were only about an inch off the ground, Freeman said.

Then, the day after Semaj's funeral, the house in Preston Heights went up in flames, because of the arson, potentially destroying physical and forensic evidence.

Back in 2017, Will County Coroner Patrick O'Neil waited several months before announcing that Semaj's death was ruled a homicide, concluding she died from asphyxiation.

"We know it was ruled asphyxiation, but how that asphyxiation occurred, we don't know," Freeman remarked on Thursday.

Even though Sgt. Earnest has taken over the role of lead investigative supervisor, longtime Sheriff's Detective R.J. Austin remains available as a resource, Freeman said. Austin, who oversaw the Semaj investigation from 2017 through 2024, is now an investigator assigned to the internal affairs unit.

"R.J. still carries a picture of Semaj with him in his case folder," Freeman said. "I feel he got unfairly hammered by the public. People don't know how much he sacrificed and how hard he worked on that case. I think he wanted justice for Semaj more than anyone."

Related Joliet Patch coverage over the years:

• Semaj Crosby 'Shoved Under Couch Like A Piece Of Garbage' 6 Years Ago: Jungles
• Semaj Crosby Settlement: $6.4 Million For Her Family
• Grandmother: Sema'j's Mother Sheri Gordon Killed Her
• Coroner: Sema'j Crosby Died Of Homicide