Report: Ogle County deputies’ use of deadly force justified during Lost Lake shooting

OREGON — Ogle County deputies who used deadly force during a June shootout near Dixon will not face any criminal charges, according to a news release from Ogle County State’s Attorney Mike Rock.

The decision, issued by the Winnebago State’s Attorney’s Office, comes after a review of the events leading up to a June 12 gunfire exchange between the Ogle County Emergency Response Team and Jonathon Gounaris, a Lost Lake resident.

In his report, Winnebago County State’s Attorney J. Hanley determined that the deputies acted in accordance with the law because they only fired their weapons after being shot at by Gounaris. Hanley also determined that based on the amount of calls and texts sent to Gounaris prior to deputies attempting to the enter the home, he should have been aware that officers were outside of the home.

Authorities were dispatched at 9 a.m. June 12 to Gounaris’ home at 402 Wild Rice Lane, with a warning that they could be facing a “suicide-by-cop” situation. The sheriff’s office activated the ERT, which is made up of individuals from different agencies that include the sheriff’s office, Oregon and Byron police departments and SWAT medics from the Rochelle Fire Department.

During the gunfire exchange with Gounaris, tactical medic Tyler Carls of the Rochelle Fire Department was struck twice in the body armor, Sgt. Tad Dominski of the Oregon Police Department suffered a gunshot wound to the upper arm and Lt. Jason Ketter of the Ogle County Sheriff’s Office suffered a gunshot wound to the face.

Ketter was taken by air ambulance to OSF Medical Center in Rockford, where he underwent surgery and was released June 14. Dominski and Carls were treated at KSB Hospital in Dixon on June 12 and released later that evening.

Gounaris was also struck during the exchange and suffered a gunshot wound to the abdomen. He was treated at KSB before being booked into the Winnebago County Jail in Rockford, where he has remained since his arrest in June. He is charged with four counts of attempted first-degree murder and several weapons offenses.

The Illinois State Police conducted an investigation into the Ogle County ERT’s use of force. Rock requested that the investigation be reviewed by the Winnebago County State’s Attorney Office as his office is handling Gounaris’ prosecution, according to the release.

Hanley on Friday issued the memorandum concluding that the officers acted reasonably and lawfully and that no criminal charges will be filed.

The investigation

The ISP’s investigation included interviewing witnesses and reviewing police radio transmissions, in-car cameras, body cameras, private surveillance video, photographs of the scene, police reports and the results of forensic evaluations.

Under Illinois law, the use of deadly force by a law enforcement officer is justifiable if force is threatened against a person, the person threatened is not the aggressor, the danger of harm is imminent, the force threatened is against the law, the person threatened must believe a danger exists, the use of force is necessary to avert the danger, the type and amount of force used is necessary and that these beliefs are necessary.

According to the investigation, about 9 a.m. June 12, Ogle County Deputy Zachary Lessman was dispatched to the west entrance of Lost Lake to speak with Gounaris’ mother, who was concerned about her son’s mental state and wanted officers to conduct a welfare check.

She told Lessman a number of concerning statements Gounaris had made that morning and the night before, including he had access to two pistols, “that he should kill himself” and “would kill anyone who tried to talk with him,” and that Gounaris’ mental health issues had not been diagnosed by a doctor but he had a “general hatred towards law enforcement for unknown reasons,” the memorandum said.

During that conversation, Gounaris’ mother attempted to contact her son over text, but received no response.

The incident was then turned over to the ERT, which tried calling Gounaris’ cellphone several times with no answer. The ERT decided to a throw a phone toward Gounaris. After that, a total of 75 calls were made to the throw phone and to Gounaris’ cellphone with no answer.

The ERT decided to enter the home about 11:50 a.m. Two teams were assigned - one would enter from the front of the residence and one from the back.

As shown on body camera footage released by the sheriff’s office, Sgt. Justin Diehl approached the door with a breaching device and Deputy Jonathon Shippert, Carls, Dominski and Ketter followed behind.

[To view the video, visit www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zEhLBrcn0g.]

After Diehl breached the door, he backed away and Shippert threw a flash-bang device into the residence, with Dominski in front of him. On the footage, debris can be seen coming from the residence as the first shot is fired from inside the residence.

In interviews with each of the deputies, all five of them describe the first shots as coming from inside the residence, according to the memorandum.

The body cam video shows that once shots were fired, Diehl moved away from the door. Shippert also moved away from the door into the middle of the driveway before firing his pistol toward the residence while walking backwards.

Two firearms were recovered from the home. One of which was found on the living room floor with an empty magazine. Based on forensic evidence, the ISP concluded that was the gun used to fire at the officers.

Gounaris remains in the Winnebago County Jail. He is scheduled to appear in court at 1:30 p.m. Oct 17.