Sgt. Doug May Put On Desk Duty In Eric Lurry Case

JOLIET, IL — A week after his police department has come under national scrutiny, Joliet Police Chief Al Roechner issued a statement Tuesday night revealing that the police sergeant at the center of the controversial in-custody death of Eric Lurry from Jan. 29 has been reassigned to administrative desk duty.

On Monday, July 6, Joliet Patch broke the news that Roechner put Sgt. Javier Esqueda, the whistleblower on the case, on administrative desk duty and stripped Esqueda, a 27-year veteran of the police department, of his police powers including his badge, gun and take home police car.

A nugget of news contained in Tuesday night's news release indicated Joliet Police Sgt. Doug May — who held Lurry's nostrils shut for nearly two minutes in the backseat of rookie Officer Andrew McCue's squad car on Jan. 28 — has also been put on administrative duty this week.

"Sergeant Esqueda was placed on administrative duty on July 6, 2020, due to him being under a criminal and an internal investigation," Roechner's statement read. "This was opened in regard to his unauthorized access to video evidence that was involved in a criminal investigation, which could have compromised the case. Sergeant May was also placed on administrative duty the same day pending the results of an internal review. For the sake of transparency, both internal investigations are being handled by an outside firm at my request."

During last week's interviews with Chicago's CBS television station, Sgt. Esqueda suggested that fellow members of the police force may have tampered with evidence inside the squad car where Lurry was being detained.

“I cannot speak on any of the internal affairs investigations until they are completed, however I have to condemn in the strongest terms the false narrative that has been put out regarding that there was not an outside investigation done, video evidence was withheld and that the Joliet Police Department was covering up evidence," Roechner stated.

According to the police chief, he learned on June 16 that Sgt. Esqueda gained unauthorized access to a video that was being investigated by an outside agency, the Will-Grundy Major Crimes Task Force.

"This video that he accessed was shared outside the police department violating chain of custody and potentially compromising evidence in a criminal investigation. When this was discovered, I immediately opened a criminal investigation on June 18, 2020," Roechner said Tuesday night.

On June 26, Roechner stated that he learned from the Will County State's Attorney’s Office that the criminal investigation and their review regarding the death of Eric Lurry was done. Will County's Coroner’s Office classified Lurry’s death as an accident due to heroin, fentanyl, and cocaine intoxication as a result of Lurry ingesting large quantities of narcotics, the chief added.

"Because of the information I just received, I immediately opened an internal investigation to review the actions of the officers in the video," Roechner's news release stated.

So far, Roechner has not released the video showing Lurry dying in the backseat of the Joliet squad car on city of Joliet property. "We have not released any video to the media," Roechner announced at Tuesday night's City Council meeting.

Roechner issued his statement just hours after 40 people held a demonstration outside the downtown Joliet Police Station and many of the protesters insist that Sgt. May was responsible for causing Lurry to die. The demonstrators are demanding that Sgt. May as well as the officer who stuck his baton into Lurry's mouth, Officer McCue, be charged with crimes.

As Lurry was losing consciousness in the back of the squad car, the white Joliet police sergeant smacked Lurry in the head and declared, "Wake up, bitch!"

In an exclusive interview with CBS Chicago investigative reporter Dave Savini, Sgt. Esqueda was asked whether he wholeheartedly believes the Joliet Police Department was involved in an attempt to cover up the truth regarding Lurry's death.

"Yes I do, 100 percent," Esqueda told Savini. "I did the right thing. I'm a good honest cop."

At 6:04 p.m. on Tuesday, a CBS news anchorman told Savini, "What does the chief have to say? You've got missing video, missing audio, a sergeant of 27 years stripped of his badge, who apparently did the right thing. What is the chief saying?"

"I would love to tell you what the chief has to say. He has refused every attempt that we have made to talk to him," Savini told thousands of CBS viewers during Tuesday's 6 p.m. newscast. "Phone calls. I showed up at the station. He's not talking. We've got a lot of questions."

Then, 45 minutes later, at 6:49 p.m. Joliet Police Lt. Chris Botzum issued a news release to numerous Chicago area news outlets including Joliet Patch containing Roechner's statement.

Joliet's Police Department also posted Roechner's full statement on its Facebook page. Doing so sparked several comments from people.

• "For anybody knocking what the officers did, they were trying to get the drugs out of the guys mouth and prevent his death!"
• "I never trust what the police have to say, but thanks for spinning it... The lack of compassion that your officers gave to this man during his dying moments was truly a disgusting act and there is no justification of that in my world..."
• "I respect every single officer in blue that goes out there every single day but if you're going to justify how they treated this man then you're part of the problem."
• "He was a drug dealer and died from using drugs. You don’t have to BE A genius to see THE PRESS AND PATCH are making him a hero. NOT."
• "Dude y'all are messed up. We aren't blind OR stupid."
• "Thanks Chief! It is ridiculous that you would have to even put this out. Everyone thinks there is always a conspiracy when they truly don’t know all the steps, people involved, and other situations that comes with an active investigation or a death in custody. Unfortunately we live in a time we’re we judge first before waiting for the facts to come out."
• "So no clear comment on how highly inappropriate the officers actions in the video were? Yea cool. #iSeeThroughTheBlueLine."
• "I pray that the Chief stops being a smoothrain and admits foul play on his department. I pray that the Chief realizes that these are why protests and riots happen- because Police think they're above the law- and receive no accountability."