Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy John Bartello has been placed on administrative leave and is under criminal investigation.
The reason, or reasons, why aren’t clear. WMAY radio on Sunday first reported that a deputy had been put on paid leave. According to the radio report, Sheriff Wes Barr refused to say why Bartello had been placed on leave and that the matter had been referred to Illinois State Police for a criminal probe. The sheriff refused to tell the station Bartello’s name, according to a report on the station’s website. The department released Bartello’s name today in response to a formal records request submitted by Illinois Times.
The records released today don’t state why Bartello was placed on leave. Joel Benoit, an assistant Sangamon County state’s attorney who advised the sheriff’s office on how to respond to the newspaper’s records request, said that the department has no written records stating why Bartello was placed on paid leave. Records show that Bartello was placed on leave last Thursday.
Contact Bruce Rushton at brushton@illinoistimes.com.
This article appears in Jun 23-29, 2016.
