Joliet Man Charged With Violating Order Of Protection For 4th Time Loses SAFE-T-Act Hearing: Judge

JOLIET, IL — Michael Moreno, the 39-year-old Joliet man who just got let of the Will County Jail after five months in custody, is now being detained following his latest Joliet police on charges of unlawful violation of an order of protection.

Monday's criminal complaint included a petition seeking to deny pretrial release for Moreno and Will County Judge Chrystel Gavlin agreed to keep Moreno in custody under the SAFE-T-Act's dangerousness standard.

Moreno's latest arrest happened this past Sunday. Moreno already has a 2025 conviction in Will County for violating an order of protection, the criminal complaint noted.

According to the petition to deny pretrial release, Joliet police responded to the 500 block of Bethel Drive for reports of a violation of an order of protection. When the officers showed up, Moreno was sitting outside on the porch of the address. However, as a result of his 2025 conviction, Moreno is prohibited from entering or remaining the residence in the 500 block of Bethel Drive until April 20, 2027.

Officers spoke with the woman who has the order of protection in place and "she was unaware that the defendant was sitting outside and was OK," prosecutors indicated.

Prosecutors informed Judge Gavlin that on April 21, Moreno entered a guilty plea and received a sentence of probation after committing another violation of an order of protection.

"Even more aggravating, he picked up this new offense four days after he was sentenced under 2025CF2195. The defendant has now violated this order of protection three times in the short eight months that it has been active," prosecutors pointed out for Judge Gavlin. "There are no conditions to mitigate the danger he poses to the protected party because the defendant has shown the court that he will not abide by any conditions."

Will County Jail logs show that Moreno was kept in the county detention facility from Dec. 6 until April 21. Before that, he was kept in the jail from Sept. 10 until Oct. 16.

Joliet Patch produced a lengthy crime story about Moreno in December. That story was headlined: "Joliet Man's 'Alcoholism Is The Worst I've Ever Experienced, I Do Not Feel Safe Around Him': Victim."

"Michael had substance issues since we started dating four years ago," the woman's order of protection from August 29 reads. "His alcoholism is the worst I've ever experienced. Michael has threatened to kill himself. He has been hospitalized and treatment (sic) more times than I can count. The past few months Michael has been involved in heavy drinking along with psychosis. He also has been doing cocaine and giving out my address to drug dealers and prosecutes (sic). I've had to call the cops multiple times due to trying to get him help."

Back in 2020, the Will County Forest Preserve District Police arrested Moreno at the Rock Run Preserve in Joliet on charges of public intoxication, under the influence of alcohol.