Joliet Township official with felonies no longer wanted at board meetings

A Joliet Township trustee with felony convictions will not resign from office even though township officials believe he should and prosecutors have threatened to take court action against him.

Township officials were informed Friday afternoon that Karl Ferrell, 41, will not resign as trustee, according to township attorney Bryan Wellner.

Wellner said Township Supervisor Angel Contreras told Ferrell not to attend any more board meetings or township functions.

“The township’s position is that we believe Mr. Ferrell is ineligible for office, so we believe he should resign,” Wellner said.

A call and messages to Ferrell were not immediately returned.

Ferrell’s past felony convictions would make him ineligible for office under the Illinois Township Code.

Ferrell has said he will not resign and believes Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow is retaliating against him because of his past activism.

Glasgow’s prosecutors have given Ferrell until Tuesday to resign, otherwise they will file a quo warranto complaint in court the next day. A quo warranto complaint challenges a person’s right to hold elected office.

Tuesday also is the same day for the township’s regular board meeting.

Glasgow’s attorneys also will seek to have Ferrell reimburse them for the costs of prosecuting the complaint.

Prosecutors first notified the township of Ferrell’s ineligibility to hold office on Dec. 7.

In a Feb. 25 letter, Will County Assistant State’s Attorney Scott Pyles said Ferrell has been convicted of six felonies over two decades, including for drug and handgun possession.

“The voters in Joliet Township must have their interests represented and their voices heard through their elected representatives. As you are not legally eligible to hold the position of Joliet Township trustee, the citizens of Joliet Township are being denied this fundamental right,” Pyles’ letter said.

Ferrell contends Glasgow’s office brought up the issue of his ineligibility for office as retaliation against him because of his past protests regarding the Eric Lurry case, his protest pushing for hate crime charges against Cord Krol, 53, and his other activism.

“This didn’t come up until I’ve done protests. It seems like they’re trying to silence the voice of the people,” Ferrell said.

Glasgow’s spokeswoman, Carole Cheney, said the state’s attorney’s office notified the township of Ferrell’s ineligibility for office “based on the law, not any of the claimed reasons given by Mr. Ferrell.”

Ferrell won a seat on the township board in last year’s spring election.

Ferrell ran on the Joliet Township Democratic slate that included Contreras, Township Highway Commissioner Vincent Alessio, Township Clerk Alicia Morales, as well as trustees Suzanna Ibarra, Ray Slattery and Cesar Escutia.

In 2020, the slate defeated incumbent township officials, including former Township Supervisor Dan Vera.