Criminal Complaint Against Mayor Ogle Referred to Will County Sheriff

A police report filed by Daniel A. Rose on March 4, 2025 against Frankfort Mayor Keith Ogle for violating Illinois' The Campaign Disclosure Act has been referred by Deputy Chief William Dowding of the Frankfort Police Department to the Will County Sheriff's Department for further action on Thursday March 6, 2025.

The subject of the complaint are social media posts on Ogle's Instagram account that use the official Village of Frankfort logo in posts that urge viewers to "re-elect Keith Ogle", "elect Keith Ogle", or "KeithOgle2025".

Previous to filing the police report, Rose filed a Complaint for Violation of the Campaign Disclosure Act with the Illinois State Board of Elections on February 28, 2025.

Prior to the complaint being filed with the Illinois State Board of Elections, The Committee to Elect Keith Ogle, located at 22602 Granite Drive, Frankfort, IL 60423, was notified of the contents of the complaint.

The full content of the filed police report reads as follows:

"I am writing to report a violation of The Campaign Disclosure Act (10 ILCS 5/9 Sec. 9.25.1) on the part of Mayor Keith Ogle. In subsection (b) of Sec. 9-25.1 of The Campaign Disclosure Act it clearly states "No public funds shall be used to urge any elector to vote for against any candidate or proposition or be appropriated for political or campaign purposes to any candidate or political organization." Keith Ogle repeatedly has appropriated the official Village of Frankfort logo, which is public intellectual property of the Village of Frankfort, in social media campaign posts encouraging voters to "re-elect Keith Ogle" on his Instagram account @mayorkeithogle. The posts are dated 02/05/25, 02/10/25, 02/25/25, and 02/28/25. The use of the Village's official logo in campaign posts encouraging voters to "elect" or "re-elect" any candidate for office is illegal and no different under the law then holding a political campaign event out of Village Hall. As discussed in the statute, "The first time any person violates any provision of this Section, that person shall be guilty of a Class B misdemeanor. Upon the second or any subsequent violation of any provision of this Section, the person violating any provision of this Section shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor."

A class B misdemeanor (the first offense - 2/05) is punishable with up to 6 months in jail and a $1,500 fine. A class A misdemeanor (every subsequent offense - 2/10, 2/25, 2/28) is punishable to up to one year in jail, or a fine of up to $2,500."

Will County Sheriff's Department Investigation Division will be handling the case going forward and referring its findings to the Assistant Attorney General.