O'Dekirk Skirmish: Decades Old Police Video Surfaces

JOLIET, IL — Two days after church pastor Lonnie Posley, businessman Cornel Darden Jr. and the Joliet Black Police Officer Association announced their support for Mayor Bob O'Dekirk, former Joliet City Councilman Warren Dorris is holding another news conference to discuss his outrage with the mayor.

An old video surfaced Thursday on YouTube called "ODekirk Assaults 2 Men of Color." At the time of the incident, O'Dekirk was a Joliet police officer. He can be seen in the video walking with several handcuffed prisoners.

The latest video is from more than 20 years ago, and Dorris plans to talk about the video at Friday's 2 p.m. news conference at his church, Prayer Tower Ministries Church of God in Christ, 500 Stryker Ave.

"If O'Dekirk's actions as a cop back then were truly as well-trained and innocent as he is now claiming from the mayoral podium, we want to give him the opportunity to publicly say so, and to explain his side so there is no confusion," Dorris said in Thursday's news release.

The video, posted on YouTube, can be seen below.

"This particular video shows O'Dekirk aggressively assaulting a handcuffed black man then tackle a Hispanic man from behind," the advisory for Friday's news conference states. "This newly surfaced video from his cop days, as well as multiple videos of the May 31 incident directly conflict O'Dekirk's denials that he assaulted anyone, and that he was never reprimanded for excessive force. Police documents detailing his suspensions are missing from his personnel files."

O'Dekirk told Patch on Thursday night he has not seen the video in question. He did tell Patch that Dorris has been a political adversary for years.

For instance, when O'Dekirk ran for mayor against incumbent Tom Giarrante and beat him in 2015, Dorris supported Giarrante, O'Dekirk told Patch.

"Everyone knew that Warren Dorris was a big supporter of my opponent," O'Dekirk told Patch on Thursday night.

O'Dekirk told Patch he was an officer on the Joliet Police Department from 1993 to 2003, serving under the administrations of Chief Joe Beazley and Chief David Gerdes.

"It's clear he's not interested in working with me to help the community but instead wants to create more division," O'Dekirk said of Dorris. "I left the police department 17 years ago. I think Warren Dorris needs to get over it and move on."

During his time on the Joliet Police Department, O'Dekirk said he received the department's highest honor, sharing the 1995 Martin S. Murrin Award with current Joliet Police Sgt. Pat Cardwell. O'Dekirk also said he was nominated for Joliet police officer of the year four times during his 10 years on the force, and he received several commendations.

On Tuesday, O'Dekirk announced at City Hall he will not resign surrounding his role in an altercation on Joliet's West Jefferson Street on the night that involved lots of street violence and looting. He encouraged others to run for mayor in another three years when he's up for re-election.

O'Dekirk also told reporters that he welcomes the results of the Illinois State Police investigation into the case.

Joliet community activist Mady Perez, a frequent critic of O'Dekirk, spoke at Tuesday's news conference, and Perez said the mayor did nothing wrong in the parking lot incident on Jefferson Street that led to the arrests of two young black men.

"I've never seen J.P.D. be so violently attacked and the mayor be assaulted and then physically attacked, to the point where he was pushed to the ground, falling onto another citizen," Perez told journalists at Tuesday's City Hall news conference.

At his June 3 press conference outside City Hall, Dorris read from a written statement: "A video surfaced that showed the mayor attacking one of the demonstrators as they were being asked to leave and go home. In the video, it is very clear that our Mayor was the aggressor in this incident."

At Friday's news conference, the speakers will include Dorris, Bishop Steven Evans and Pastor Herb Brooks, who is also a Joliet Will County Board member.

Related:

Mayor O'Dekirk Won't Be Resigning, Mady Perez Comes To His Defense

Brad Price, Joliet Black Police Officer Association Rally Around O'Dekirk

Pastors Demand Resignation Of Mayor Bob O'Dekirk