Prosecutors say a Wauconda man, who has been ordered held in custody, crashed his car in North Barrington, fled the scene, shot himself and then threatened to shoot up a hospital and police.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office and Lake Zurich Fire Rescue Department responded around 11:45 p.m. on November 25 to a single-vehicle crash at Route 59 and Golfview Drive in North Barrington.
Deputies located a heavily damaged Mazda RX8 off the roadway, Lake County Sheriff’s Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said.
Sheriff’s deputies found the vehicle unoccupied, Covelli said, and the driver appeared to have fled the scene after crashing into trees and brush in someone’s yard.
A sheriff’s office canine and a drone were called to track the driver due to possible injuries.
A check of the vehicle’s registration showed the vehicle was registered to Chase T. Johnson, 24, of Wauconda, Covelli said.
A bystander spotted Johnson walking in the area of Route 59 and Route 22 around 1 a.m. on November 26 and called 911.
Deputies arrived and located Johnson, who appeared to be intoxicated and injured.
Covelli said deputies discovered Johnson had a gunshot wound to one of his feet and was transported from the scene to an area hospital but prosecutors said the man’s wound was not discovered until he was being processed at the Lake County Jail.
Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Emily Shanley-Roberts said Johnson had superficial injuries on his face and was being processed in booking.
Corrections officers were photographing his facial injuries when Johnson said, “What about being shot in the foot?”
He informed staff that he had been shot in the foot and jail nursing staff said that it did, in fact, appear Johnson was shot in the foot, Shanley-Roberts said.
He was transported to Vista Medical Center East in Waukegan and medical staff confirmed the self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Johnson was uncooperative and did not explain how he sustained the gunshot wound, Covelli said.
A Lake County Sheriff’s Office explosive detection canine searched the areas Johnson likely used to flee the crash scene to see if a firearm was discarded.
No firearm was recovered from the scene, Covelli said.
Johnson was charged with driving under the influence and leaving the scene of a crash and was released from custody with citations.
Shanley-Roberts said Johnson, that same day, posted on Facebook threats towards a high-ranking member of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, saying that he “shoulda shot higher” and he was “coming for yo job and yo wife.”
Shanley-Roberts said Johnson had previously posted on Facebook earlier in November, “Your reminder that the best cops are dead ones” with accompanying emojis.
Johnson was at Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington on Friday and Saturday and security was called to Johnson’s room for a disturbance.
Johnson had wanted to leave against medical advice and was reportedly smacking things with his crutch and screaming at people.
Security officers who responded drew their tasers and were escorting him out. Shanley-Roberts said Johnson made racial slurs towards one of the officers and pointed at the officer’s gun and said, “I have a gun too and I know how to use it.”
He repeatedly asked for the security guard’s information but the officer refused to give it, leading Johnson to allegedly respond, “That’s fine, I will just spray the whole place then.”
Johnson was later taken into custody by the sheriff’s office for unlawful possession of ammunition at his mother’s house in Wauconda following a disturbance with his father.
Johnson again made comments generally referencing his Facebook post threatening the high-ranking member of the sheriff’s office, Shanley-Roberts said.
Shanley-Roberts said that Johnson is also a suspect in a shooting that happened behind a store in Vernon Hills and he had posted a photo of himself with a gun sitting on his car behind that store.
Johnson was on pre-trial release for driving under the influence at the time of his recent offenses and the state’s attorney’s office filed a petition to revoke his release.
“In sum, this defendant is on a downward spiral. He has threatened to shoot up a hospital. He has made threats towards law enforcement officers. He poses a danger to the community, but most of all, the increasing frequency of his erratic actions show that no conditions can reasonably be expected to prevent him from committing further Class A Misdemeanor or Felony offenses,” Shanley-Roberts said.
Lake County Judge Michael Nerheim granted the petition to revoke pre-trial release following a hearing held on Tuesday afternoon, saying that he found Johnson’s behavior concerning and no release conditions could mitigate that.
Johnson remains held in the Lake County Jail and is scheduled to appear in court again on Friday.