Joliet Attempted Murder Defendant Denise O'Malley Posts Bond

JOLIET, IL —Denise O'Malley, the 55-year-old Joliet woman who Joliet police say shot her husband as he was celebrating a Chicago Bears come from behind victory at their house on Brighton Lane, is no longer in Will County's Jail after her bail was lowered this week.

On Tuesday night, the attempted murder defendant who works as a registered nurse at Edward Hospital in Naperville was freed from the Will County Jail after spending 2 1/2 months incarcerated facing a $750,000 bail.

However, her criminal defense lawyer, Jeff Tomczak of The Tomczak Group, was able to convince Will County Circuit Judge Dave Carlson to lower her bail to $100,000 so her family could get her help at a local psychiatric hospital.

O'Malley has been charged with attempted murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, aggravated discharge of a firearm and aggravated domestic battery following her arrest in September by the Joliet Police Department.

Will County Jai logs show that O'Malley was released from the jail at 7:03 p.m.

On Wednesday, Tomczak told Joliet Patch that his client is now staying at the Linden Oaks Behavioral Health in-patient hospital in Naperville.

Tomczak said he is preparing a psychological defense for his client as her criminal case moves forward at the new Will County Courthouse.

He told Patch that his client's husband is fully supportive of her being sent to Linden Oaks to undergo treatment for mental illness.

"He urged the court to get her treatment," Tomczak remarked. "He believes that it was the mental illness that caused the incident."

According to October courtroom testimony, John O'Malley was inside his house on Sept. 13 watching the Chicago Bears game against the Detroit Lions when his wife appeared near the living room, hiding her hands behind her back. Then, Denise O'Malley pointed a gun at her husband of more than 30 years and fired, the Joliet shooting victim testified.

A retired Cook County Sheriff's Office deputy, John O'Malley told Will County Circuit Court Judge Dave Carlson he was shot in his left thigh and upper chest. Bleeding profusely, John O'Malley ran outside his house in the 1900 block of Brighton Lane and collapsed. Neighbors called 911.

After being hospitalized in critical condition, John O'Malley made a remarkable recovery.

During the October court hearing, John O'Malley told the judge that he still loved his wife and that her mental illness was the cause of the shooting.

Joliet Patch coverage: Brighton Lane Shooting Victim: 'I Still Love Denise'