Crystal Lake Lawyer Sentenced In Gun, DUI Case

CRYSTAL LAKE, IL — A Crystal Lake attorney is facing thousands of dollars in fines along with two years of probation for failure to surrender his firearm owner's identification card an obstructing a peace officer, according to a report.

Donald Franz, 51, of the 300 block of Dartmoor Court, had over 50 rifles and other firearms confiscated from his home, the Northwest Herald reported. His law license will also be suspended for two years. Franz was fined $2,345 Wednesday and in addition to his probation, he'll spend five days in the county jail.

Judge Val Gunnarsson, from Carroll County, stepped in to try the case since McHenry County judges recused themselves, due to the fact that the defendant was a local attorney.

Franz was arrested Jan. 20, according to the Chicago Tribune, on charges of drunk driving and possessing a firearm with a revoked FOID. In a search of Franz's home, police found 56 firearms, the Tribune reported.

The arsenal included 36 high-powered rifles, assault-style rifles, 20 handguns, shotguns and thousands of rounds of ammunition, the Herald reported, adding that Franz is believed to be a hunter.

Franz's law license was suspended due to three separate complaints against him. One claimed he pressured a client to sign a document requiring him to pay $10,000 for a lawyer in a divorce case, the Herald reported. Another accused him of challenging a client to a duel and insulting him and the final complaint alleges he threatened to kill Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission administrator Jerome Larkin.

Franz faced other charges, but most were dropped as part of a plea deal. The dropped charges were aggravated battery to a peace officer, possession of a firearm with a revoked FOID card, possession of ammunition without a FOID card, carrying a concealed firearm under the influence, illegal use of a driver's license and aggravated driving under the influence with a revoked license.

Franz argued that some of the items in evidence were gathered from an unlawful search, the Herald reported in August.

Article images by Crystal Lake Police Department