Park Forest, IL—(ENEWSPF)—Police charged a driver with DUI after they allegedly found him asleep in a running vehicle after 1:30 a.m. In two other incidents, two Park Foresters each face domestic battery charges. Officers arrested another with three warrants and allegedly drove with a revoked license.
Park Forest Police Blotter Reports Through April 13, 2024
Domestic Battery
Police arrested Valentino L. Garcia Jr., 23, Park Forest, on April 10 and charged him with domestic battery. Officers responded to a home on Mantua Street at 10:58 AM to investigate a disturbance report. A woman alleged to SouthCom that Mr. Garcia was attacking her.
When police arrived, Mr. Garcia and the woman were arguing, according to police. Both the man and woman had scratches on their bodies, the woman on the left side of her neck and Mr. Garcia on his back. According to police, an officer determined that Mr. Garcia was the alleged aggressor in this incident.
Police learned that there were ten prior domestic incidents between both subjects, most of which occurred in Richton Park, according to the report.
Domestic Battery
Police arrested Will A. Tyler, 71, Park Forest, on April 11 and charged him with domestic battery. Police responded to the 300 block of Indiana Street to investigate a disturbance report. While responding, SouthCom Dispatch told police that the caller alleged someone was attacking him.
Upon arrival, an officer noticed welts on the right shoulder of the alleged victim that suggested someone struck that person with “a looped object,” according to police. At the same time, the alleged victim said, “You can arrest her (meaning will A. Tyler); she hit me with a cord,” according to police.
The complainant said he and Ms. Tyler got into an argument about laundry, and Ms. Tyler allegedly began striking the complainant with a cord, according to police.
Later, the reporting officer checked the police database and found six calls for service between the two parties in this incident going back to 2023, according to the report.
Revoked License
Police arrested Melvin W. Jones, 54, Park Forest, and charged him with suspended registration, revoked license due to DUI, and uninsured motor vehicle. According to police, Mr. Jones was also processed on two failure-to-appear DUI warrants and one failure-to-appear warrant regarding the suspended license. All warrants were out of Cook County.
An officer patrolled at 10:43 PM, parked in the parking lot of a business in the 400 block of Sauk Trail. The officer saw a dark blue BMW pull into the parking lot from Sauk Trail. According to police, the vehicle stopped briefly near the officer’s squad car before proceeding through the drive-through.
The officers searched the registration of the BMW, which yielded a positive response on a suspended registration, according to police.
The BMW exited the drive-through and turned eastbound onto Sauk Trail towards Blackhawk Drive. The officer followed and initiated a traffic stop at the Blackhawk Drive intersection. Melvin Jones was the only person in the car.
When the officer asked Mr. Jones for his driver’s license and proof of insurance, Mr. Jones allegedly admitted to the officer that he did not have a driver’s license, according to police.
DUI Alcohol
Police arrested Jermaine Lyes, 52, Park Forest, on April 13 and charged him with driving while under the influence of alcohol (DUI), illegal possession of alcohol by a driver, and no proof of insurance.
Police responded to the parking lot of a Juniper apartment building at 1:38 AM to investigate a noise complaint. SouthCom told officers that an unknown caller reported someone playing loud music from a vehicle in the lot.
Police: Driver Asleep
Upon arriving, an officer saw a silver 2004 Lexus RX330 parked on the south side of the parking lot with its headlights on. Upon exiting his squad, the officer heard loud music from inside the Lexus, according to police. One officer approached the driver’s window, and another approached the passenger’s side. They found a man, the driver, later identified as Jermaine Lyes, asleep in the driver’s seat of the Lexus, according to police. Police said that even though the driver was asleep, the keys were in the ignition, and the engine was running, police said.
According to police, an officer saw an open Steel Reserve beer can in the middle console cup holder through the window. The can was open and approximately half empty.
Driver Asleep, Begins to Wake
Mr. Lyes appeared to begin waking as the officer shined his flashlight inside the car. Police knocked on the window, and Mr. Lyes opened his eyes and “eventually rolled down his window,” according to the report. When asked, Mr. Lyes told police he lived at the Juniper apartment building.
An officer asked him where he came from and if he just got home. Mr. Lyes allegedly answered, “Uhm no, handicap,” according to the report. The officer asked him again where he came from, and Mr. Lyes allegedly spoke “unintelligibly,” saying, “Just in one crib, man,” according to police. He reportedly told them, “I ain’t come home for crib, man, I’ve been had license yesterday, man,” according to police.
Mr. Lyes provided officers with his license but did not have any proof of insurance, according to police. He told officers that he couldn’t walk and used a wheelchair, which was folded up in the back of the Lexus, according to police. He was able to drive a vehicle, according to police.
Police Smell Alcohol
Mr. Lyes told police he was going to the grocery store. When officers asked him what he would buy, he allegedly answered, “Like the f-c k, I can’t do sh-t,” according to police.
According to police, Mr. Lyes had glossy and red eyes, slurred his speech, and police smelled an odor of alcohol coming from his breath, according to police.
An officer decided to administer the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test through the driver’s open window while Mr. Lyes was still in the driver’s seat. The officer told him that he wanted to make sure he was not too much intoxicated, according to police.
Since Mr. Lyes had difficulty walking, the officer did not administer a walk-and-turn or one-leg stand test, according to police.
Officer Asks Driver to Recite Alphabet
The officer asked him if he could say all the letters in the English alphabet. Mr. Lyes agreed. He started with the letter A, and when he got to the letter P, he allegedly continued with J, Q, and R, followed by additional letters that he mumbled, according to police. He finished with the letters L and C.
Police told him they were arresting him on suspicion of DUI alcohol. He attempted to take a breathalyzer test but “was not blowing hard enough into the breathalyzer tube,” according to police.
Inside the car, besides the Steel Reserve beer can that was halfway empty, police found an empty Icehouse can of beer, an unopened beer can, and 10 opened New Amsterdam .5 mL vodka bottles. Seven of the bottles were empty, and three were approximately halfway empty, according to police.
About Police Reports
Please note that we repeatedly say “according to police” in these reports and often use “allegedly.” We are not asserting in any way that those police arrested and charged committed any offenses. We report on what is in the reports that the police furnish to us. As those accused are innocent until proven guilty, the burden is on prosecutors and police to prove all alleged crimes.
eNews Park Forest has continuously published the addresses of those arrested and will continue to do so. 5 ILCS 140/2.15 states that the governmental body (for these reports, the Police Department), shall release information on those charged, including their name, age, and address. This information is necessary to ensure the proper identity of those arrested.
Presumption of Innocence
An arrest does not mean that a person is guilty. The law presumes all those whom police arrest are innocent until proven guilty. It is the policy of eNews Park Forest not to remove items from the public record from publication. Suppose you find your name in the police reports. Our policy is that we will only add information relevant to the final disposition of the case at hand, e.g., “Mr. Smith was subsequently acquitted,” “Mr. Smith entered a guilty plea,” or “All charges against Mr. Smith were subsequently dropped.” We will do so upon receiving and verifying proof of such disposition.
We do not strike, “unpublish,” or delete news.
According to police, officers captured all the incidents in this report on body-worn and dash-mounted cameras at the respective scenes. All Park Forest police officers wear body-worn cameras. Officials typically abbreviate these devices as BWC in the reports.
We encourage persons wishing to leave anonymous information on any criminal matters, including narcotics or gang activity, to call the Park Forest Police Department Investigations Division at (708) 748-1309.
