Yorkville Settles Police Misconduct Lawsuit: Reports

YORKVILLE, IL — The City of Yorkville has agreed to a six-figure settlement over an alleged 2017 police misconduct incident, according to reports. The plaintiffs in the case, Tad Johnson and his mother Charlene Johnson, are being awarded $125,000 and the city is not admitting to any wrongdoing.

The settlement went through with a 6-0 vote in the City Council meeting Tuesday.

The Johnsons' lawsuit alleged excessive force, false arrest and malicious prosecution, and says the incident caused physical and emotional injuries, loss of liberty and violated their Constitutional rights.

According to the complaint, the September 2017 incident began when officer Jeffrey Johnson, Sgt. Sarah Klingel and one other officer who is not named in the suit were called to a house on Overlook Court for a report of littering. Kendall County Now reported the other officer on the scene was Christopher Hayes.

When they arrived, they found Charlene Johnson outside her home. Inside was her 44-year-old son, Tad Johnson, who was "obviously experiencing emotional distress," a judge later said.

Charlene Johnson told officers that Tad, her son, was suffering from PTSD and that she wanted to take him to a doctor. But, according to the lawsuit, and corroborated by audio obtained by WSPY News, rather than getting the man help, the officer taunted Johnson.

In the audio, Tad Johnson swears and tells the officer to get away from the door to the home.

"Come on out and make me move... you still live with mom..." the officer tells him.

Johnson is seen in dashcam footage strangling himself in a window, Kendall County Now reported, and one officer is heard telling him to finish himself off.

The mother and son apparently tried to flee in a vehicle but were blocked by a squad car. Police ordered Tad Johnson out of the car and shocked him once with a Taser.

"He's getting cited for littering, that's for sure," an officer can be heard saying. "... I got the Taser out, he's getting tased immediately."

Later, both the Johnsons were found not guilty of all the charges. Kendall County Judge Stephen Krentz suppressed evidence in the case in 2018, finding that the officers on the scene escalated the situation by "taunting the person who was obviously experiencing emotional distress."

Klingel was later fired, Johnson was suspended and, according to Kendall County Now, Hayes was disciplined in August 2018.

See more on Patch:

• Yorkville Sergeant Fired After Misconduct Investigation
• Yorkville Police Sued For Excessive Force, False Arrest
• Woman Suing Police For Excessive Force Charged For Bad Check