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Lake County sheriff’s office K9 Dax closed out 2023 by apprehending a man arrested for domestic violence who had fled from Good Shepherd Hospital near Barrington.
Dax and his handler, Deputy John Forlenza, took Jaime C. Romero, 51, of Island Lake, into custody at a doctor’s office near the hospital that Romero had illegally entered, police said.
Romero had been brought Good Shepherd in the early morning hours of Dec. 31 after he was arrested for allegedly battering and strangling his girlfriend. Romero, who also had an active warrant in Kane County, fled from the hospital on foot at around 5:20 a.m., police said.
Forlenza and Dax were among the officers who responded. The pair tracked Romero until getting word that a burglar alarm had been activated at a doctor’s office nearby on Illinois Route 22.
They went there and Forlenza found an open door. He announced that Dax would be released unless Romero surrendered. He did not respond, so the dog was released. Dax found Romero inside the doctor’s office and bit him on the leg. Romero allegedly punched the dog, which would not release him.
He was taken into custody and charged with two counts of aggravated domestic battery, striking a police dog, resisting arrest and criminal trespass to a building.
Dax was not hurt.
“Our 10 canine teams are in the community serving the public each and every day,’ Sheriff John Idleburg said. “Through quick communication from our sheriff’s dispatchers, providing crucial information to our deputies at the scene along with the work of those at the scene, we were able to take this violent, fleeing offender into custody.”
Reckless homicide indictment
A grand jury has indicted a man for reckless homicide in an August crash in which a Wauconda man was killed.
The panel handed down the indictment against Kevin Kaminski for the Aug. 24 Fox Lake crash that killed Anthony Herrera, 21.
Police said Kaminski was driving south in the northbound lanes of U.S. Route 12 at 9:40 p.m. when he ran into Herrera’s vehicle head-on. Authorities said Kaminski was driving under the influence at the time. Both men had to be extricated from their vehicles.
Jail reaccredited
The Lake County jail was recently reaccredited by the national group that monitors health care services for inmates.
The National Commission on Correctional Health Care said that Lake County again met the standards of care for inmates. This is the 25th year in a row the county was reaccredited
Lake County News-Sun
NCCHC inspectors visited the jail in July to see if the jail met the mark is areas like patient care and treatment, health promotion, safety and disease prevention, governance and administration, personnel and training, special needs and services, and medical-legal issues.
“We have a constitutional obligation to provide health care to those incarcerated in our jail, and we are committed to doing so with innovation, excellence, and efficiency,” Sheriff John Idleburg said. “Great work to our health care staff, correctional staff, and leadership for their hard work and dedication.”
“In continuing to achieve NCCHC accreditation, the Lake County jail has demonstrated its commitment to quality, standards-based correctional health care,” NCCHC chief executive officer Deborah Ross said. “Accreditation is a voluntary process, and we commend the Lake County jail for successfully maintaining this distinction. The health of incarcerated people is a vitally important component of public health.”
Self-inflicted
Grayslake police responded Dec. 30 at 12:45 p.m. to the Comfort Inn Suites on Illinois Route 120 for reports of someone shot.
Arriving officers did find a person dead from an apparent gunshot wound, which police said appeared to be self-inflicted.
The Lake County coroner’s office was contacted and the incident remains under investigation, authorities said. Police said there is no related danger to the public.