Ex-Joliet cop reportedly arrested on drug-related charge: records

Joliet police were notified that Officer William Busse charged with delivery of a controlled substance, but it remains unclear whether he will face any charges.

On April 28, Joliet police Lt. Joseph Egizio informed police brass that he and Deputy Police Chief Carlos Matlock were told by a Chicago police officer that their agency and a federal task force arrested Busse for “delivery of PCS,” or possession of a controlled substance, according to records obtained in a Freedom of Information Act request.

“(The Chicago Police Department) and the task force are actively serving a search warrant on Busse’s residence. Busse is going to be charged federally,” Egizio said.

However, as of Thursday, federal court records do not show any charges filed against Busse. The U.S. Attorney’s Office has failed to answer questions on whether Busse will face criminal charges or to explain the circumstances of his arrest.

U.S. Attorney’s Office spokesman Joseph Fitzpatrick did not respond to calls and a message Thursday inquiring about Busse.

Federal Bureau of Prison records show Busse was released from its custody April 29.

Busse still faces misdemeanor domestic battery charges in Will County, stemming from two arrests by New Lenox police in 2019 after he was accused of physically abusing his ex-wife. He has not yet gone to trial on those charges.

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

Busse remained on the force until he reached a settlement with Joliet city officials to end his employment on June 4.

On May 5, Joliet City Manager James Capparelli, police union attorney Tamara Cummings and Busse signed an agreement that said, “Busse is hereby terminated from his employment as a Joliet police officer effective June 4, 2021.”

City emails obtained in a FOIA request showed discussions of Busse’s resignation and settlement occurred in late April, about a week before Joliet police learned of Busse’s arrest. Most of the emails provided were redacted.

On April 20, James Powers, attorney for Clark Baird Smith, told City Attorney Sabrina Spano that Cummings was going to discuss resignation with Busse. On April 22, Spano told Powers that she was told by Capparelli that a settlement had been reached between the city and Busse.

On May 4, Spano asked Capparelli if Joliet Police Dawn Malec was aware of Busse’s settlement and he said, “I believe generally she just wanted him off the books.”

Busse’s attorney, Joey Vucko, sent a letter to the city on May 7 demanding a $60,000 settlement in connection with a charge Busse filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, a federal agency that enforces laws prohibiting employment discrimination.

Busse had a claim “arising from Joliet’s illegal search and seizure of his person, including via multiple blood draws performed without reasonable suspicion,” in 2019, Vucko’s letter said.

Spano told Powers and Kelly Coyle, another attorney for Clark Baird Smith, that she does not “authorize a settlement offer be made to Busse on his EEOC charge.” Coyle had told Spano, “we don’t recommend giving Busse anything.”

Coyle drafted a letter to Vucko rejecting the demand.

“Reasonable suspicion indeed existed for his drug test, and significant credible evidence demonstrated that Mr. Busse committed gross misconduct including, but not limited to, engaging in domestic violence on multiple occasions,” Coyle’s letter said.

Coyle’s letter said a public hearing before the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners was avoided “which would have revealed these gruesome details,” as Busse and the police union “reached an agreement with the city that involved his termination in exchange for an insignificant payment.”

On May 14, Spano told Coyle, “I can’t imagine it will come as a surprise to her that we are rejecting the demand in light of his past discipline and the fact that he has recently been arrested and was allegedly in federal custody.”

A few days later, Vucko responded to Coyle’s letter, asking “an explanation as to how reasonable suspicion arises from a domestic incident so as to justify multiple needle pokes on consecutive days to take blood from my client.”