A lawsuit filed last year against DeKalb County law enforcement officials is officially over.
A federal judge in Rockford has dismissed Adrian Chaney's suit against the DeKalb County State’s Attorney, the DeKalb County Sheriff and Sycamore Police. The decision handed down Monday, July 15, came as the result of a settlement between Chaney's lawyer, Sheldon Nagelberg, and DeKalb County State’s Attorney Richard Schmack's office. The State's Attorney's Chief Civil Assistant says everyone is glad to have the suit resolved.
In July 2012, Nagelberg sued then State's Attorney Clay Campbell and the others, saying that, among other things, Campbell had violated Chaney’s constitutional rights by waiting nearly a year after Chaney's arrest and detention on a drug charge before charging him.
ORIGINAL STORY: There may be a settlement soon in a lawsuit filed nearly a year ago against the former DeKalb County State's Attorney and other county and municipal law enforcement officials.
Court records show that notice of a settlement in the case of Chaney v. Campbell was given June 13 in federal court in Rockford. The two sides have until July 10 to submit documents to the court finalizing the settlement. At that point, the judge can dismiss the lawsuit, closing the case.
Chaney's attorney could not be reached, but a lawyer in the State's Attorney's office confirmed that a tentative settlement had been reached. They said they could not offer any details on the agreement at this time.
The lawsuit filed in July 2012 alleged that then State's Attorney Clay Campbell and other law enforcement officials violated Adrian Chaney's civil rights by waiting almost a year after his arrest in 2011 on a drug charge before formally charging him with a crime. The suit also alleged a number of irregularities by the arresting officers.
Chaney's drug case is still awaiting trial.