Crest Hill's False Police Shooting Story: Lawyer Denies FOIA

CREST HILL, IL — Spesia & Taylor Attorneys at Law, the Joliet law firm representing Crest Hill, has rejected Joliet Patch's latest Freedom of Information Act request seeking more information surrounding Crest Hill Police Sgt. Terry Fenoglio. Fenoglio shot and wounded his fellow officer, Ryan Tetlow, and also fatally shot Crest Hill apartment tenant Matt Parks, on March 14, 2022.

That night, some members of Crest Hill's Police Department told an incorrect story of what actually happened inside the Pioneer Road apartment. At the scene, Crest Hill Police Investigative Sgt. David Reavis began sharing false information with others, wrongly suggesting that Parks stabbed Officer Tetlow in the leg, when other Crest Hill police and Joliet police officers already knew that Tetlow was shot.

Parks was fatally shot by Sgt. Fenoglio, and police said Parks was wielding a knife. The lawyer for Parks' family, attorney John Schrock of Plainfield, has previously told Patch he questions whether Parks even had a knife in his hand when Sgt. Fenoglio fired his gun, shooting and killing Parks, and shooting officer Tetlow in the leg.

"It was not a good shooting," Schrock told Joliet Patch last month. "I feel he should have been charged. He recklessly shot his fellow officer, and he also recklessly shot Matthew Parks."

Before being arrested in an unrelated related incident of domestic violence last September in Yorkville, Fenoglio decided he would not be making any statements or granting any interviews to the Will-Grundy Major Crimes Task Force in regard to his conduct in the third-floor hallway of Matt Parks' apartment.

Despite having no version of what had happened from Sgt. Fenoglio, Will County State's Attorney James Glasgow decided Fenoglio would not face any criminal charges in connection with the deadly shooting.

This past July, Crest Hill's police administration of Chief Ed Clark and deputy chiefs Jason Opiola and Ryan Dobczyk restored Sgt. Fenoglio to regular active duty for Crest Hill.

On Aug. 31, Joliet Patch submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to Chief Clark and Crest Hil's municipal law firm surrounding the March 2022 shooting.

Patch's FOIA questions were as follows:

1. Patch seeks access to any written statements authored by Sgt. Fenoglio or signed by Sgt. Fenoglio related to Fenoglio's use of deadly force. If Fenoglio authored none and signed none, please indicate that in your response to this FOIA request.

2. Patch seeks access to any and all written correspondence from Chief Clark or any other designed person notifying Sgt. Fenoglio of the internal affairs investigation into the case.

3. Patch seeks access to any written order from Chief Clark or any other designed person notifying Fenoglio he would be interviewed in reference to the March 14, 2022, shooting.

4. Patch seeks access to any interview statements involving Fenoglio as part of the internal affairs investigation into the March 2022 shooting, whether it be a written transcript of the interview, audio recording or video recording.

5. Patch seeks access to any correspondence notifying Fenoglio or his attorney of the disposition of the internal affairs investigation.

6. Patch seeks access to any correspondence notifying Fenoglio and or his lawyer of his return to active duty status with Crest Hill PD.

7. Patch seeks access to the case review from the Will County State's Attorneys clearing Sgt. Fenoglio for return to duty.

8. Patch seeks access to any internal affairs investigation or investigations that resulted in any discipline and/or alleged policy or department rules violations committed by Fenoglio for any reason since Jan. 1, 2021.

On Sunday morning, attorney Michael Stiff of Spesia & Taylor notified Joliet Patch's editor that all eight of Patch's FOIA questions were being rejected, and that he was refusing to provide any public information whatsoever.

Stiff's responses to Joliet Patch's previous questions were as follows:

Since last year, Joliet Patch has remained the only news source providing in-depth coverage into the events surrounding the shootings of Matt Parks and Officer Tetlow by Sgt. Fenoglio.

On Aug. 28, Joliet Patch published another exclusive on the case, headlined,"False Crest Hill Police Shooting Story Revealed, Sgt. Back On Job."

"Sgt. Terry Fenoglio was never interviewed by the task force," Will County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Dan Jungles confirmed to Joliet Patch's editor. "The task force received information from the Metropolitan Alliance of Police union that Sgt. Fenoglio would not be making any statements regarding this Officer Involved Shooting incident unless ordered to do so by Crest Hill Police Chief Ed Clark."

Patch also learned that Crest Hill Police Investigative Sergeant Dave Reavis began spreading a false story in the aftermath of the police shooting. Reavis began telling others that Sgt. Fenoglio shot Parks because Parks had just stabbed Tetlow in the leg.

While Sgt. Reavis was spreading false information in regard to his fellow Crest Hill's sergeant's shooting, other members of the Crest Hill Police Department knew the truth of what really happened and their police reports from the incident reflect that, Joliet Patch found.

Contained within the 124 pages of previously released police reports furnished to Joliet Patch through a FOIA request was discussion of the Crest Hill police squad car video footage from Officer John McHale, who sped to the shooting scene at the Pioneer Road apartment buildings.

New Lenox Police's Tim Perry, who serves as division commander with the Will-Grundy Major Crimes Task Force, obtained video footage from McHale's squad car two days after the incident, on March 16, 2022.

Because McHale's squad car microphone was activated, the audio made it clear McHale knew his fellow officer was shot, not stabbed.

Crest Hill's two deputy chief, Opiola and Dobczyk, were responsible for meeting with the task force to provide McHale's information to them.

"Officer McHale can be heard advising someone that shots were fired, and an officer was down ... He further stated he did not know the status of anything, but officer Tetlow was hit. I later learned this was a phone call to notify Deputy Chief Opiola of the incident ... Officer McHale stated that an officer was shot, and the offender was too. Officer McHale advised the officer was shot through and through and he was on the third floor landing," the police reports said.

"Someone asked where the offender was and someone else responded that he was down ... Officer McHale later stated Tetlow was shot through and through to the leg, and Tetlow was not really responding. McHale stated to someone that Officer Tetlow was shot and ensured someone would go with him to the hospital ... Officer McHale was also heard describing the incident as a domestic with a knife. The suspect was barricaded and then came out with the knife. The remainder of the recording did not yield any additional information regarding the incident."

For many weeks, Crest Hill police and the Will County Major Crimes Task Force did not correct the false narrative they provided to Joliet and Chicago news media on the night of the shooting wrongly claiming Parks stabbed the officer, prompting Sgt. Fenoglio to use deadly force to save his fellow officer's life.

In reality, Parks had not stabbed anyone.

And because Crest Hill's Police Department, under Chief Clark's leadership, has not equipped its officers with body cameras, there is no police body-camera footage of the hallway shootings.

"I do not think that Sgt. Reavis purposely misled anyone regarding those facts," Will County Chief Deputy Sheriff Dan Jungles replied to Joliet Patch in August. "All of the original radio traffic, dispatch notes, and information that Sgt. Reavis was provided indicated that Matthew Parks was armed with a knife threatening the officers. The actual shooting incident occurred in a matter of seconds, and Officer Tetlow sustained an injury to his leg that required several tourniquets to stop the bleeding."

Related Joliet Patch coverage of Matt Parks case:

Friendly Fire Injured Crest Hill Cop, Suspect Never Stabbed Him: Ferak

False Crest Hill Police Shooting Story Revealed, Sgt. Back On Job

Police 'Didn't Need To Use Excessive Force,' Crest Hill Mom Says