Kathy Molitor's Prison Sentence On Hold For Several Weeks

JOLIET, IL — Although Will County Judge Dave Carlson recently sentenced Kathy Molitor to three years at the Illinois Department of Corrections, the Joliet drunken driver responsible for the death of Plainfield motorcyclist Jaime Mendez, 36, is not being incarcerated for now.

After being admitted into the Will County Jail on Jan. 5, upon pleading guilty to aggravated driving under the influence, Molitor was released from custody last Wednesday, Feb. 15.

Judge Carlson signed an order last week releasing Molitor from the county detention facility. "The defendant is placed on home detention program until March 29," court files show.

While on home detention, Molitor, now 64, will have a SCRAM (Secure Remote Continuous Alcohol Monitoring) bracelet, and she must completely abstain from the use of alcohol while in the SCRAM program, court files show.

Molitor was also ordered not to tamper with, obstruct or attempt to defeat the SCRAM bracelet or modem.

The delay in making Molitor serve her prison term at the Illinois Department of Corrections stems from questions raised about the older Joliet woman's health during her sentencing.

Judge Carlson told everyone gathered for Molitor's sentencing that based on a head injury Molitor suffered a few years ago while working at a Joliet area Home Goods store, there is a possibility that the Illinois Department of Corrections may decide not to accept her as a prison inmate, and instead, want her placed on home confinement.

Carlson has put Molitor's case back on his court docket for a March 29 status hearing.

On that date, provided that a thorough medical assessment has been completed, it's possible the judge will send her to the Department of Corrections rather than keep her on home confinement for the duration of her three-year prison term that must be served at 85 percent.

Leading up to her sentencing, Naperville lawyer Jim Ryan submitted about 20 pages of letters from friends, former coworkers and neighbors of Molitor. The letters urged the judge to show leniency on Molitor, who had no prior criminal history until she was driving drunk on Route 59, crashing into Mendez's motorcycle, killing the 36-year-old husband and father on Sept. 18, 2016.

"My wife and I have I lived next door to Kathy Molitor for 17 years. We could not have asked for a better neighbor," former Joliet mayor Tom Giarrante wrote the judge. "She has always been very neighborly and considerate. We have always felt that Kathy was an honest person and a person of integrity, and we were totally surprised and could not believe it when she made us aware of what happened. We still find it hard to believe."

In September 2016, the 58-year-old Molitor was charged with multiple counts of aggravated driving under the influence. She posted bond after being arrested and remained free for nearly six and a half years while awaiting her trial date.

Molitor lives in the 4600 block of Joliet's Lalique Court.

Related Joliet Patch coverage:

Prison Sentence In Kathy Molitor's DUI Fatal Wreck On Route 59

Prison Or Probation? Joliet Woman Killed Motorcyclist On Route 59