Park Forest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- Strap yourself in and be patient with the first two reports below. Both concern the arrests of one man charged in two separate incidents. Both reports reference the other. We tried to clarify these references while preserving the integrity of each narrative.
The same officer appears to have filed both. The overlapping narratives are because police questioned the same witnesses in connection with each.
We also report on more incidents that bring us to the end of this batch: August 14, 2023. All reports below conclude the first two weeks of August. Those were busy days for the police.
Park Forest Police Blotter Reports Through August 14, 2023: Final Section, Part IV
First of Two Arrests: Domestic Battery, Obstructing
Police arrested Travis L. Mitchell, 31, 237 Allegheny St., Park Forest, on August 10 and charged him with domestic battery and obstructing a peace officer. Police also arrested him in connection with a warrant out of Aurora, Illinois.
Domestic Battery Call
Two officers responded to a domestic battery call in the 200 block of Allegheny Street at 12:17 AM. Officers spoke with the alleged victim. She said that earlier, on August 9, an acquaintance was involved in a hit-and-run accident. She had reported to one of the officers responding to this call. At the time, however, she did not tell police that she knew the alleged offender who drove the vehicle. That person was her ex-boyfriend, Travis L. Mitchell, she allegedly told police. He was driving a gray Pontiac with giant rims, according to police.
Another officer had located that vehicle in the area through a licensed plate reader hit at 7:32 PM, police said. This was about 15 minutes before the alleged hit-and-run accident was reported, according to police. At that time, the Pontiac was driving eastbound on North Street at Western Avenue, according to police.
The complainant initially did not want trouble for the man.
The complainant from the hit-and-run said she did not disclose the alleged offender’s identity since she did not want him to get in trouble. However, Mr. Mitchell allegedly sent a text message stating that someone had just hit his car, according to police. He also reportedly stated, “On my soul ima kill you when I see you,” according to the report. The report says he told the complainant to “check yo crib and yo tv’s” while she was at work.
The complainant said she left work early and went home.
When she got there, she saw that the air-conditioning unit in a front window had been removed, according to police. She told officers this was Mr. Mitchell’s doing to get inside the house, according to the police. While she was in the driveway, Mr. Mitchell came out from behind a truck parked in her next-door neighbor’s driveway, according to police.
Mr. Mitchell then allegedly began to argue with her. She said she kept telling him to leave her alone. The woman then got her one-year-old child from her car. She tried to go into the house holding her child.
Mr. Mitchell then allegedly struck her on the right side of her head with a Hennessy bottle, according to police. He then reportedly ran off.
And there’s more.
The complainant could not recall which direction he ran. She told police that Mr. Mitchell also took two of her sex toys from her bedroom, according to police. According to the report, she told officers she wanted to pursue complaints for domestic battery.
According to the report, a witness alleged that she knew who Mr. Mitchell was and confirmed that he hit the complainant with the Hennessy bottle.
While on the scene, a friend of the complainant’s arrived and told officers she saw Mr. Mitchell walking towards his car in the area, according to police. An officer then drove to the area in his squad car and located a man matching Mr. Mitchell’s image. That man was with the silver Pontiac that the license plate reader hit earlier, according to police.
Another officer arrived shortly after. Police activated their emergency lights and detained Mr. Mitchell, according to police. When officers asked if his name was Travis Mitchell, Mr. Mitchell allegedly said, “Hell naw,” according to the report. Police then placed him under arrest.
Second of Two Arrests: Driving While License Revoked
Police arrested Travis L. Mitchell, 31, 237 Allegheny St., Park Forest, on August 10 and charged him with driving while his license was revoked and leaving the scene of an accident.
At 7:47 PM on August 9, dispatchers sent an officer to the intersection of Westwood Avenue and Well Street to investigate a hit-and-run report. The officer spoke with the complainant. She said she was driving on Western Avenue when a gray Pontiac sedan pulled out of Algonquin Street. According to the report, the Pontiac turned south on Western Avenue and struck her front bumper. The vehicle did not stop and allegedly left the area, according to police.
The complainant said there was a man and a woman inside the car.
Identity of Driver
Police later learned that the driver of the alleged offending vehicle was the complainant’s ex-boyfriend, Travis L. Mitchell, according to police. The complainant said she did not want to tell the police about this since she did not want to get Mr. Mitchell in trouble, according to the police.
On August 10 at 7:54 PM, the same officer spoke with Mr. Mitchell about this incident in an interview room at the Park Forest Police Department. The officer advised Mr. Mitchell of his rights. He allegedly said he understood his rights, signing a Statement of Constitutional Rights and Waiver form, according to police.
Mr. Mitchell told the officer that he wanted to speak with him, according to police.
Another Side of the Story
Mr. Mitchell said that on August 9, he was in his car, a silver 2003 Pontiac Bonneville. He said he was the front passenger, and his friend was driving the vehicle, according to police. Mr. Mitchell said that the complainant saw that his friend was driving the car and got upset with him, thinking he had brought her to his home for sexual relations, according to police.
Mr. Mitchell allegedly said the complainant followed them onto Western Avenue North towards the McDonald’s on Route 30. According to the report, he alleged she struck the back of his car with the front of her vehicle.
Mr. Mitchell also said his friend’s child was in the backseat during the accident, according to police. Mr. Mitchell said they did not report this incident because he did not want to be caught with a warrant, according to police.
According to the report, the officer then charged Mr. Mitchell with driving while his license was revoked and leaving the scene of an accident.
Three Outstanding Warrants
Police arrested Derek L. Williams, 37, 13 Hemlock St., Park Forest, on August 10 and processed him on three outstanding warrants.
Dispatchers sent an officer to the first block of Gertsung Road to investigate a report of a man sleeping in the front yard of a home.
When the officer arrived, he saw a man sitting on the curb. The officer recognized the man from previous contacts as Derek L. Williams.
Another officer arrived to assist.
The first officer asked Mr. Williams why he was sleeping in the front yard. Mr. Williams allegedly said he was tired because he was out all night. He said he had just walked from Chicago Heights.
Mr. Williams then asked officers for a ride to his home on Hemlock Street.
The officer questioning him asked if Mr. Williams had any warrants. Mr. Williams allegedly said he did not. The officer then ran Mr. Williams’s name through dispatch. Dispatchers advised that Mr. Williams had a warrant out of Cook County, according to police.
The officer then advised Mr. Williams that he had an arrest warrant and placed him in handcuffs. Police waited for confirmation of the warrant. Cook County notified police that Mr. Williams had three valid bond forfeiture warrants, according to the report.
Police took Mr. Williams to the Park Forest Police Department. There, they processed and charged him on the three warrants. The first was in connection with an aggravated assault charge. The second was in connection with a charge of criminal trespass to property. Third was in connection with a charge of criminal trespass to land, according to police.
Endangering the Life of a Child
Police arrested Andre Morgan, 38, 351 Waverly St., Park Forest, on August 13 and charged him with endangering the life of a child.
Officers responded to an address on Waverly Street at 6:06 AM to check on the well-being of two juveniles. Before police arrived, SouthCom Dispatch said that the complainant, Andre Morgan, just left the Park Forest Police Department after allegedly requesting a well-being check for his girlfriend, daughter, and niece.
Mr. Morgan allegedly told SouthCom that he just left the residence to go to work and was unable to care for the children, according to police. Mr. Morgan said he was unaware of his girlfriend’s location as she had not been home in days, according to police.
When they arrived, officers tried to make contact by knocking on the doors and announcing their presence through cracked windows.
There was no answer from anyone inside.
One officer contacted Mr. Morgan by telephone and told him his body-worn camera was active for the phone call, according to police.
Mr. Morgan allegedly said he had to go to work and could not care for the two children.
He reportedly said he just left at home alone, according to police.
Mr. Morgan said he was unsure of his girlfriend’s whereabouts. However, he knew the children were home, according to police.
While on the phone, Mr. Morgan said he saw his girlfriend driving on Sauk Trail, according to police. Mr. Morgan allegedly stated that he currently lived at that home and permitted officers to enter the house to check on the children, according to police.
Another officer arrived at the house to assist.
Police Enter the Home and Discover Two Young Girls.
At 6:48 AM, police entered the residence through an unsecured door in the back of the house. Officers announced their presence and began looking for the children.
They found two young girls, eight and nine years old. Both girls were sleeping on a mattress when police woke them up.
Police asked the children where Mr. Morgan’s girlfriend was. They were unsure of her location, according to police. They said they saw her the night before when they went to bed on August 12, according to police.
The officer asked one of the children if she knew who Mr. Morgan was. She acknowledged knowing him. When officers asked her the last time she had seen Mr. Morgan, she replied that it had been a while, according to police.
The girls appeared to look healthy and were in good spirits, according to police.
According to the report, an officer tried to reach Mr. Morgan multiple times to get more information. Mr. Morgan, however, did not answer, according to police.
Earlier, Mr. Morgan had provided SouthCom Dispatch with a phone number for his girlfriend. That number was not in service, according to police.
Police give the girls a hot breakfast.
Police brought the children to the Park Forest Police Department for protective custody and secured the home when they left. Officers brought the children to a child interview room that had toys and a television for movies.
They gave the children a hot breakfast.
Police contacted DCFS at 7:40 AM. At 7:42 AM, two officers returned to the home on Waverly Street to investigate a disturbance outside the home. Police spoke to all parties involved and learned that the sister of Mr. Morgan’s girlfriend arrived at the house to pick up the children. Mr. Morgan was there as well.
An officer took him into custody at 8:11 AM and transported him to the Park Forest Police Department.
Domestic Battery
Police arrested Yvonnea L. Coleman, 36, 1616 N. Marywood St., #311, Aurora, and charged her with one count of domestic battery.
At 5:40 PM to investigate a report of a domestic disturbance. According to dispatchers, a passerby saw two women outside a home pushing one another, according to police.
Upon arrival, police saw some women in front of the house. An officer spoke with one of the women and attempted to sort out what had happened.
While speaking with the woman, two officers both allegedly witnessed Yvonnea L. Coleman push a man out the home’s front door. She reportedly shoved him hard enough that he stumbled forward and nearly fell to the ground, according to police.
One of the officers asked what her relation was to the man. He learned that he was her brother, according to police. The officer then told her he was arresting her on suspicion of domestic battery.
The man said he did not wish to pursue criminal complaints against Ms. Coleman. Police transported her to the Park Forest Police Department, put her in a holding cell, and charged her with one count of domestic battery. She remained there until police took her to the Markham Courthouse for a mandatory bond hearing, according to police.
According to the report, the arresting officer signed a criminal complaint on behalf of the alleged victim per the Illinois Domestic Violence Act.
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 who police arrest are innocent until proven guilty. It is the policy of eNews Park Forest to not remove items in 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.
Police captured all the incidents in this report on body-worn and dash-mounted cameras by officers at the respective scenes, according to police. All Park Forest police officers wear body-worn cameras. Officials abbreviate these devices typically 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.
