2 men charged with attempted murder in Joliet Township freed from jail

Two men charged with attempted murder of one of the men’s fathers in a Joliet Township shooting June 14 have been released from jail after a judge allowed for a reduction of their $1 million bail.

John Hernandez Jr., 20, and Angel Vargas, 21, both of Joliet, have been indicted together on a charge that alleged the two tried to kill the 46-year-old father of Hernandez on June 14 by firing a gun at him in the 500 block of Miami Street in Joliet Township.

A court hearing was held July 12 for both men after their attorney, Chuck Bretz, filed a motion to have their bonds reduced, court records show.

Bretz argued in motions for both men that their $1 million bonds were “oppressive” and “excessive” under the Eighth Amendment in the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits the government from imposing excessive bail.

Judge Carmen Goodman granted Bretz’s motions. She reduced Hernandez’s bond to $100,000 and Vargas’ bond to $50,000.

On July 12, Vargas was released from jail after posting 10% of his bond, and Hernandez was released July 15 after he posted 10% of his bond, jail records show.

Hernandez still has a pending case from 2020 in which he’s charged with firing a gun at a vehicle in Joliet that he knew was occupied by a person. He also was charged in the same case of leaving the scene of a two-vehicle crash in Joliet.

Hernandez’s father petitioned for a protective order against him that alleged his son vandalized his house by spray-painting the word “snitch” on the property and “other gang-related things.”

The indictment against Hernandez and Vargas alleged that Hernandez violated his father’s protective order against him by trying to shoot him.

Hernandez and Vargas also were charged in the indictment with shooting and injuring a 37-year-old woman with a firearm. She was named as a member of Hernandez’s father’s household in his protective order.

The incident that led to the arrest of Hernandez and Vargas began about 11 p.m. June 14, when Will County sheriff’s deputies arrived in the 500 block of Miami Street, which is in the eastern portion of Joliet Township.

Hernandez’s father and the 37-year-old woman told deputies that they were sitting on their front porch when two men approached them on foot and fired several rounds at them, according to court records and a statement from the Will County Sheriff’s Office.

Hernandez’s father was not injured, but the 37-year-old woman suffered gunshot wounds to her right elbow and the top of her right foot, police said.