Joliet cop signed settlement ending his employment: records

A settlement was reached between a Joliet police officer facing domestic battery charges and the city of Joliet that said his employment ended on June 4, city records show.

On May 5, Joliet City Manager James Capparelli, police union attorney Tamara Cummings and Officer William Busse signed an agreement that said, “Busse is hereby terminated from his employment as a Joliet police officer effective June 4, 2021,” according to records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.

“The parties agree to notify the (Board of Fire and Police Commissioners) all pending cases involving Busse are resolved, and with such notifications to the BFPC no longer will have any jurisdiction to address the appeals,” the agreement said.

Busse had six internal affairs cases, according to the agreement.

The agreement said Busse will be paid 100% of his accumulated sick, vacation and compensatory time balances, within 14 days of June 4. He was owed about $6,490 for vacation time and about $4,294 for sick time, the agreement said.

Capparelli and Cummings did not immediately respond to calls Thursday. A caller answered Busse’s phone but then hung up and didn’t respond to a second call.

Busse was arrested twice in 2019 on charges alleging that he physically abused his ex-wife. He was arrested by New Lenox police on May 31 and again on Dec. 29 of that year.

Former Joliet Police Chief Al Roechner recommended Busse for termination in February 2020.

On April 28, Busse was reportedly arrested again but the circumstances surrounding that arrest remain unclear. Joliet police Sgt. Dwayne English directed questions about the arrest to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Joseph Fitzpatrick, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, has not responded to a message and call about Busse’s arrest as of Thursday.

Busse was released from the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons on April 29, according to the BOP’s website.

Two misdemeanor domestic battery cases against Busse remain pending in Will County court. One of them is scheduled for jury trial on July 12 while the other has a status hearing on the same date.

On June 11, Busse was not present with his attorney, Jeff Tomczak, in the one case scheduled for trial, according to the court minutes. The case will have a hearing on July 7 to determine whether prosecutors can have a domestic violence expert testify at trial.