Nurse Was Raped, Tortured During Delnor Hostage Situation: Attorney

GENEVA, IL — A nurse held hostage by an inmate at Delnor Hospital in Geneva earlier this month was beaten, tortured and raped, a lawyer for the nurse told reporters Thursday. The news was shared at a press conference at the law offices of Taxman, Pollock, Murray & Bekkerman, LLC, in Chicago — the firm hired by the two nurses held hostage at the hospital on May 13. The firm has filed a civil-rights lawsuit in federal court alleging Kane County employees are at fault for the hostage situation, according to the Daily Herald.

At the press conference on Thursday, Murray said corrections staff responsible for guarding Tywon Salters, 21, fell asleep on the job, left him unshackled for long periods of time and were often seen watching TV or on their phones while on duty at the hospital.

"There was a pattern of conduct by the officers who were supposed to be guarding this inmate that directly lead to this incident," Murray said.

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The lawsuit filed on Thursday names the Kane County Sheriff's Office, corrections deputy Shawn Loomis and APEX3 security as defendants, according to the Aurora Beacon-News. Beside being sexually assault, the lawsuit also claims one of the nurses was struck by a bullet fired by the Kane County SWAT team. That same bullet ended up killing Salters.

Salters was first taken to the hospital on May 8 and was receiving treatment in a room on the third floor of the hospital after he ate a jail-issue sandal and also ingested cleaning fluid, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Murray said Salters, who was in custody at the Kane County Correctional Center on a possession of a stolen vehicle charge, had a lengthy criminal history. He also had been on suicide watch and had tried in the past to harm himself while in custody at the jail. He also had a pattern of manipulative behavior and had been combative in the past, Murray said.

"With all this different things going on, that should have triggered some sort of heightened protocol within the Kane County Sheriff's system while detaining Mr. Salters at the hospital," he said. "However,the opposite happened."

On the day Salters escaped, he had once again been unshackled to go to the bathroom, Murray said. He made a move on the guard and took his 9mm handgun. He left the room and was walking naked down the hallway when he came to the nurse's office, Murray said. This is when he took the first nurse hostage.

He demanded she take off her clothes so he could put them on, Murray said. He physically restrained her, held her at gunpoint and threatened her. At some point, the second nurse came into the room, and Murray let the first nurse go.

Murray held the second nurse hostage for three and a half hours, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

“He held a gun to her head the entire time,” Murray said. “She was tortured. She was repeatedly beaten with a gun in the back of her head. She was told she was going to die. She was going to leave in a body bag. He said he was going to shoot his way out. … She was also raped.”

Kane County Lt. Patrick Gengler, public information officer for the sheriff's office, declined to comment on the lawsuit and a spokesman for the state's attorney's office also said they could not comment on pending litigation and investigations, the Daily Herald reports.

After negotiations between Kane County SWAT and Salters deteriorated, the SWAT team entered the hospital room at about 4 p.m. During entry, a Kane County SWAT member fired their weapon, striking Salters. Salters was pronounced dead at the scene.

The SWAT officer who shot Salters and the corrections officer who was guarding him have both been placed on paid administrative leave.

The Illinois Police Public Integrity Task Force has now been requested to investigate the use of force during the officer-involved shooting, authorities have said.

The Kane County Sheriff’s Office is conducting an internal review of policies, procedures and protocol regarding the transporting of jail detainees and how detainees are kept under guard while outside the jail, according to authorities.

The Illinois State Police are investigating the officer’s deadly use of force. According to Illinois law, the investigators in an officer-involved death, shall, in an expeditious manner, provide a complete report to the state’s attorney’s office where the death occurred. The Kane County State’s Attorney will review the ISP report to determine if the use of force was justified.

More via the Aurora Beacon-News, Daily Herald and the Chicago Sun-Times

Photo caption: Delnor Hospital (left) and Twyon Salters (right) Photo credit: Delnor Hospital's website and Kane County Sheriff's Office

More on Patch

• Kane Co. Reviews Policies Following Hostage Situation at Delnor
• Delnor Hostage Situation: Investigation Underway After Nurses Held Hostage at Delnor
• Delnor Hospital Hostage Situation: Inmate Who Took Employee Hostage Shot Dead