Hebron village president arrested after police find cocaine, shotgun at his house

HEBRON – Hebron Village President John Jacobson was arrested at his home Tuesday on drug and firearms charges after police found cocaine, drug paraphernalia and a shotgun and ammunition at his home after a March 17 incident.

Jacobson, 68, faces charges for unlawful possession of a controlled substance, a Class 4 felony; unlawful possession of a firearm without a requisite firearms owner identification card, a Class 3 felony; two counts of unlawful possession of firearm ammunition and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia.

The charges are the latest brush with the law for Jacobson, who faced drug charges during his 2013 campaign after police say they found crack cocaine in his vehicle during a traffic stop.

[ John Jacobson and Hebron history ]

After being elected, Jacobson pleaded guilty to those charges but was able to keep his office. He later faced charges for driving under the influence in Wisconsin in October 2013. His drug-related probation period ended in July 2014 without action from prosecutors.

Village trustees in 2014 publicly questioned his leadership, and a Northwest Herald investigation found Jacobson had been receiving and forwarding photos of naked children and adult pornographic images using McHenry County College's email system when he was dismissed as a custodian there in 2013.

Police said the latest charges came after McHenry County Sheriff's Office patrol officers were dispatched to Jacobson's home on the 12300 block of Jacob Avenue in the early hours of March 17, when Hebron police were not on duty.

A female friend of Jacobson, later identified as Jeanna Rosing, had called 911 to report Jacobson was not breathing and was beginning to turn blue.

Responders from the Hebron Fire Protection District arrived on the scene and took over efforts to revive Jacobson, later taking him to Mercy Harvard Hospital, where he was treated and later released.

Police said deputies began investigating what occurred, and while speaking with Rosing, officials noticed drugs and drug paraphernalia in plain view.

A search warrant was signed by a judge and executed later that day. A search of Jacobson's residence revealed less than 1 gram of cocaine, two crack pipes, a Chore Boy, a shotgun and some ammunition, the sheriff's office said.

The sheriff's office worked with the McHenry County state's attorney's office and approved multiple charges and warrants for Jacobson. Police served Jacobson with the warrants and took him into custody Tuesday.

Authorities transported Jacobson to the McHenry County jail, where he is being held on $25,000 bond. Jacobson will appear before a judge at 8 a.m. Wednesday, according to the sheriff's website.

Rosing, 27, of Lake Geneva, later was transported to the McHenry County jail for three unrelated outstanding warrants against her for retail theft, police said.