Lake County News-Sun |

Law & Order column: Key Lake County law enforcement positions filled

Lake County has a new homeland security director and a new executive director for its gun violence prevention initiative.

The announcements naming Michael R. Jackson and Tierra Lemon were made, respectively, this month by Sheriff John Idleburg and State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart.

Lemon, who was introduced to the County Board at a recent meeting, will coordinate the gun violence prevention initiative that began in 2022. The program is intended to prevent shootings, particularly in high gun violence areas of Waukegan, North Chicago and Zion.

Lemon will be responsible for coordinating efforts between community groups and law enforcement to look at root causes of gun violence. According to the state’s attorney’s office, Lemon will also develop strategies to support gun victims, build a database and work to obtain funding from public and private sources.

“As the GVPI director, I am most excited to be part of developing a program that emphasizes collaboration throughout the community to build the necessary preventative measures. By working together, we can reduce gun violence and make Lake County a safer place for all community members,” Lemon said.

Lemon is a social worker who recently was part of the University of Chicago’s Violence Recovery program. She is also the founder and chair of The Therapeutic Trap, a nonprofit organization that helps adolescents and young adults use creative expression to deal with trauma.

As the county’s new homeland security director, Jackson will liaise with state and federal partners to help prepare for emergencies.

He is a former Waukegan police officer who has many years of experience in emergency management for both Waukegan and Lake County. The homeland security unit is part of the sheriff’s office.

“Michael brings a wealth of experience to the homeland security and emergency management role,” Idleburg said. “Michael will play a vital role in keeping our community, businesses, and schools safe throughout Lake County.”

Kayaker rescued

Winthrop Harbor fire department personnel, assisted by the U.S. Coast Guard and fire departments from around the region, rescued a kayaker on Lake Michigan on July 16.

WHFD received a report at about 6:30 p.m. for a person injured near the North Point Marina. Upon arriving, firefighters learned that the person in distress was a kayaker in an unknown location on the lake.

Firefighters launched a boat and were able to determine the kayaker’s location by pinging his cellphone. He was found in the water clinging to his boat about three miles offshore. He was brought to shore, examined and released without treatment.

Supreme Court ruling

The Illinois Supreme Court this month ruled that the Safe-T Act was constitutional, which means that courts will be moving away from a cash-bond system.

Opponents decried the changes as something that would put alleged dangerous criminals back on the street. But Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said the act will allow judges to keep alleged criminals behind bars, regardless of their financial means.

“Instead of domestic abusers, murderers, and sex offenders using their cash to obtain release, judges can finally hold dangerous individuals prior to trial,” Rinehart said in a statement. “The victim advocates closest to these issues … support this new law, and they have not been swayed by the months of misleading statements about its contents or its impact.

“At the same time, our jail will no longer hold non-violent offenders simply because they do not have money to post bail.” he continued. “We will finally be addressing how a wealth-based system disproportionally jails Black and Brown defendants. We can finally begin to live up to the ideal that access to money should not lead to different justice systems for different defendants.”

Another suspect charged

A final person has been charged in connection with a summer 2022 shooting in which a Zion man was killed.

The sheriff’s office arrested Shelton L. Sherrod, 22, of Zion, on July 14 for unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon for being armed at the time of the July 26, 2022 confrontation in Beach Park during which Christopher Williams was killed.

Williams, 22, of Zion, was among two groups who met in the parking lot of a business on North Lewis Avenue. An argument ensued that erupted into an exchange of gunfire. Several people were seriously wounded.

Sherrod was the fourth person charged in the shooting. Authorities said they served a search warrant at his house on July 14 and found a dozen auto sears, which are parts that can covert certain guns into machine guns.

Take it slow

If you’ve got a lead foot, you might want to keep an eye on your speedometer this month. That’s because law enforcement agencies are devoting extra enforcement in July to cut down on speeding.

There will be particular emphasis on July 26 from the sheriff’s office to raise awareness of the troubles that come from speeding and other dangerous driving maneuvers.