Sheriff Candidate Won't Say if Delay in Talking to Judge About Son's Criminal Case Due to Upcoming Election

A candidate for Will County Sheriff who also leads the department’s investigations division would not discuss whether next week’s election played a part in his detectives failing to question a judge about her son’s criminal case.

Ken Kaupas, a deputy chief with the sheriff’s department, is running to replace incumbent sheriff Paul Kaupas, his cousin.

Ken Kaupas failed to return calls Thursday about the criminal case of Louis Goode, the son of Will County Judge Carla Alession Policandriotes.

Goode, 29, allegedly attacked his girlfriend and the mother of his child, 28-year-old Tanya Brandolino, battering and harassing her the night of Oct. 5 and into the following morning.

Goode was hired to work as an office assistant at the Will County courthouse even though he is a felon and still on parole. He was to start his new job the morning he allegedly beat Brandolino. His mother stopped by on her way to the courthouse to give him a ride to work, police said. The judge reportedly arrived just as the attack ended.

In a petition for a protective court order, Brandolino accused the judge of looking on as her son threatened to kill her.

“She got out of the car and said Lou get in the car,” Brandolino said in her petition. “He then threw the phone into the garage (and) he said in front of his mother I’m going to kill you you’ll never get custody of your son better get a good lawyer.”

Judge Alessio Policandriotes then drove her son to his new job at the courthouse. Detectives from the Will County Sheriff’s Department found him there, took him in for questioning and arrested him.

Brandolino’s petition did not specify whether she was still on the ground when the judge pulled up in her car.

Paul Kaupas earlier this week said detectives made “one, maybe two” attempts to talk to Judge Alessio Policandriotes about the case since Oct. 6.

“All I do know is they made one or two requests and it didn’t happen,” Kaupas said.

Alessio Policandriotes’ husband, Tony Policandriotes, a detective with the sheriff’s department, said Paul Kaupas was completely wrong.

“One of the supervisors in my unit called her, left a message,” Policandriotes said. “She called him shortly thereafter and had a conversation. They set up a date” to meet.

Policandriotes would not disclose the specific date his wife is to meet with detectives.

Ken Kaupas, a Republican, is facing off against Democrat Mike Kelley in Tuesday’s election. Policandriotes was a staunch supporter of Ken Kaupas’ opponent in the primary, Nick Ficarello. Policandriotes declined to discuss whether there were any political implications to his stepson’s case.

Judge Alession Policandriotes is also on the ballot Tuesday. She is running to retain her seat on the bench.

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