How did Jerome Halsey, now charged with shooting a CPD officer, have a FOID and CCL despite gun conviction?

CHICAGO (CBS) — Jerome Halsey, 27, is charged with shooting and wounding Chicago Police Officer Erik Moreno over the weekend – and he has a gun-related legal document.

So how did he have a hid carry license and a Firearm Owners Identification Card on the time of the shooting? Prosecutors weren’t certain if Halsey’s document had been sealed or expunged.

CBS 2’s Tara Molina dug into Halsey’s background Wednesday, and whether or not he would have been legally allowed to have a weapon within the first place.

A prosecutor at Halsey’s bond listening to Tuesday mentioned Halsey had a gun case on May 10, 2019, consisting of two counts of illegal possession of a firearm and obtained one year of probation. In the charging doc filed in Cook County Criminal Court in opposition to Halsey on Tuesday, it was not clear what occurred after he filed to have that case each sealed and expunged.

But we have discovered his document was by no means really expunged or sealed – and in the case of his FOID card, he slipped by means of a loophole designed by the state

Halsey stands charged with tried first-degree homicide, aggravated battery, and aggravated assault on accusations that he shot Officer Moreno.

Around 2 p.m. Sunday, police mentioned Officer Moreno pulled a automobile over in an unmarked police car within the 6900 block of South Sangamon Street in Englewood. 

Prosecutors mentioned three uniformed law enforcement officials noticed Halsey driving erratically, and his brake lights have been out. We have discovered from police that Officer Moreno was behind the wheel of the unmarked squad automobile.

Halsey changed into an alley and stored rushing till stopping his automobile at a lifeless finish, prosecutors mentioned.

Officer Moreno obtained out of the squad automobile and walked as much as Halsey, prosecutors mentioned. Moreno was toes away from the motive force’s facet door when prosecutors say Halsey “opened the door and fired a gun.”

Prosecutors mentioned Halsey shot Moreno within the arm and torso and additionally fired on the different two uniformed officers. Moreno and one other officer fired again and wounded Halsey.

Halsey is hospitalized from the shooting with gunshot wounds to his chest and leg.

Halsey’s bond was set at $1 million Tuesday. The proffer produced in opposition to Halsey by the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office learn as follows (“D,” or defendant, is Halsey):

“D had a prior gun case, 19CR0838301 which occurred on 5/10/19 and he was charged with two counts of Agg UUW No CCL. On 8/29/2019, D pled guilty to an amended charge of Unlawful Use of a Weapon (720 ILCS 5/24-1(A)(4)) Class A misdemeanor and sentenced to 1 year probation. On 3/30/22, D filed for expungement for the gun case. The record is unclear in the Clerks system as to what happened afterwards. However, D had a valid FOID and CCL on the date of incident.”

The State’s Attorney’s office confirmed Wednesday that the expungement has not gone forward:

“The case has not been expunged. The CCSAO filed an objection to the expungement and a hearing on the expungement is set for July 28th.”

This is the doc the State’s Attorney’s office filed blocking Halsey’s expungement and seal request.  

Thus, there was a gun cost on Halsey’s document, and but, he had a FOID card. The proffer in opposition to Halsey additionally indicated that he did not but have his Concealed Carry License when he was charged within the gun case again in 2019; he obtained the license afterward.

“The FOID card has certain rules and regulations as to whether or not you can get one or whether it could be revoked,” mentioned CBS 2 Legal Analyst Irv Miller, “and frankly, he slipped into a crack in the system.”

Miller defined since Halsey pled all the way down to a misdemeanor gun cost again in 2019, “he was able to get the FOID card, and maintain that FOID card, based upon the charges that were faced back on that earlier gun charge.”

Convicted felons cannot get FOID playing cards. Neither can anybody convicted of battery, assault, aggravated assault, or violation of an order of safety prior to now 5 years.

But the one misdemeanor cost that impacts the application and standing of a FOID card is said to home violence. So state legislation allowed for Halsey to maintain his.

“I would call it a loophole, but it was a loophole clearly designed by the General Assembly in posing this statute,” Miller mentioned.

The incontrovertible fact that Halsey had a FOID card beneath such circumstances was additionally not a shock, Miller mentioned.

“The fact that a person with an FOID card did these crimes doesn’t surprise me at all. It happens every day,” Miller mentioned. “I was a former prosecutor, defense attorney. I’ve seen all of this.”

Halsey remained hospitalized from police gunshot wounds as of Wednesday. It will not be clear proper now who’s representing him on this case.

Miller mentioned if convicted, Halsey faces a steep jail time period.

“The minimum sentence he can get, if he’s convicted of this, is 45 years in the penitentiary to natural life,” he mentioned.

Besides noting that misdemeanors aren’t a “prohibitor” for a CCL or FOID card except home violence is concerned, state police would solely say,
“The Illinois State Police does not disclose an individual’s FOID or CCL status.”

As for Officer Moreno, he had been anticipated to be launched from the University of Chicago Medical Center on Tuesday, however the date was moved to Wednesday after it was decided that extra exams have been wanted. His launch date has now been moved once more – medical doctors are conserving him within the hospital for a couple extra days.