Kane Undersheriff Pat Gengler to retire after 27 years

ST. CHARLES TOWNSHIP – He was the media voice for three Kane County sheriffs, the man who provided the news releases on accidents, fires, homicides and shootings and fielded questions from reporters for nearly 30 years.

And now Undersheriff Patrick Gengler announced he will retire, effective Jan. 1, 2023. An undersheriff is a second-in-command to the sheriff.

“It just seemed right,” Gengler said. “I’m ready to do this. And there’s people ready to step up. … I’ve been at this executive level position for quite some time and I truly believe that leaders have to know when it’s time to step aside – not just for the, but for the organization.”

Gengler said he didn’t know exactly what he will do next, other than spending time with his wife, daughter and father.

“I do not know what the next chapter is going to bring but it’s time for this one to close,” Gengler said. “The demands of this job can be pretty high and plenty of times I’ve missed things at home. … You never know when the phone is going to ring and you have to drop everything.”

Career begins in 1996

Gengler was first deputized in April 1996 and assigned to the patrol division.

Later, he served as a field-training officer and a detective in the Special Operation Unit. In 2003, he was promoted to sergeant and served as a supervisor in the Sheriff’s Patrol and Investigations Divisions.

In 2006, Gengler was promoted to lieutenant and served in the Patrol, Investigations, and Administration Divisions.

In July 2014, former sheriff Pat Perez appointed him as undersheriff, former sheriff Donald Kramer appointed him Director of Administration in 2015, then to undersheriff in 2018. Sheriff Ron Hain kept Gengler as undersheriff through his first term.

And though he also worked gangs and drugs and on federal task forces, Gengler is best known as providing news releases and answering media questions as the PIO – Public Information Officer.

He was appointed to that post under Perez.

“Commander John Marszalek told me, ‘It will be one of the best things you can do for your career,’” Gengler said, “It was a little intimidating. My first press list was fax numbers. It was the height of print media, now it’s all through social media.”

His first big media work was the 2007 Roscoe Ebey murder in Aurora.

“It was a baptism by fire,” Gengler said. “We had a homicide and a neighbor caught him (the suspect.) I said, ‘I better learn real quick.’ That was my first big ‘Oh boy.’ … It had everything you could imagine except an animal.”

Aurora’s now-retired PIO, Dan Ferrelli, helped Gengler learn how to handle high-profile incidents.

McHenry County tapped Gengler to handle media when they lost two deputies in the line of duty, Dwight Maness in 2015 and Jacob Keltner in 2019.

“They asked me to be lead a team of PIOs so they could be at the funerals and mourn the loss of their friends and partners,” Gengler said. “It was a huge honor.”

Pratt shooting

The other big incident was the mass shooting at the Henry Pratt Company on Feb. 15, 2019.

“That was really personal to me. I grew up there. My daughter was in school across from Pratt,” Gengler said.

Because he had trained the teachers on what to do in an active shooter situation, Gengler was confident they were doing what they were supposed to.

“Dan Ferrelli had retired the day before. Bill Rowley handled the press for them (Aurora police). He had never done it before and he did a phenomenal job,” Gengler said.”I went up to him and said, ‘Dan Ferrelli sent me.’ He put both hands on my shoulders and said, ‘Oh, thank god.’”

Then there was the small plane crash near Waubonsee Community College in 2010 in which two men died and power lines were knocked down.

Gengler told media to meet him on Route 47.

“We were good for a life shot for TV crews but we could not find (a reporter) who was walking in the woods,” Gengler said. “‘Somebody get him out, it’s dangerous, the plane took live power lines down.’ We had to wait.”

Gengler said he has a good opinion of media as they worked to get the facts and be accurate in their reporting.

“We are local. We all live here. We read the same things. We want the information out there,” Gengler said. “If I’m telling or you’re asking, it’s a two-way street. We’re working for the same goal of correct information.”

Gengler said he’s had a great career, but he is also looking forward not to be on duty.

“That first snowstorm when I’m not tied to my phone – if I have bread, milk, dog food, got my beer – I’m staying where I’m at,” Gengler said.

Undersheriff Amy Johnson

Hain’s current Chief of Staff Amy Johnson will be appointed as undersheriff when Gengler retires, the first woman to be undersheriff in the office’s history.

Hain stated in a text message that Gengler’s retirement will “leave a tremendous void at the Sheriff’s Office.”

“His service and guidance as my Undersheriff has been invaluable,” Hain’s text stated.

“On the other hand, we are incredibly excited to appoint Amy (Johnson) as our first female undersheriff at KCSO. She is a highly respected law enforcement official in the region and will bring outstanding leadership to the Office,” Hain’s text stated.

According to a news release, Johnson has been a deputy since 2004, working as a patrol deputy, officer in charge, recruitment officer, investigator/detective, crime scene evidence technician, grant writer, field training officer, juvenile officer, member of the Kane County Accident Reconstruction Team and is currently lead crime scene investigator for the Kane County Major Crimes Task Force.

Johnson has a master’s degree in criminal justice science with emphasis on policing and is currently working the publication of her doctoral dissertation on public policy and administration for leadership and management.

She currently teaches law enforcement courses at Elgin Community College and forensic science courses at Aurora University.