Kane County Associate Judge Keith Johnson will decide next month whether DuPage County Circuit Court Judge Patrick O'Shea is guilty of reckless conduct after he allegedly discharged a gun in his apartment last fall.

Johnson heard the evidence against O'Shea, 67, of the 200 block of East Willow Avenue, Wheaton, during a bench trial Feb. 20. The case was moved to Kane County to avoid any potential conflicts of interest.

The Illinois State's Attorneys Appellate Prosecutor was appointed special prosecutor in the case. O'Shea was removed from all judicial duties after being charged Oct. 13, 2017, by Wheaton police. He had been assigned to the law division since 2014.

In the complaint against him, O'Shea is charged with "pointing a firearm at a common wall of his apartment, and pulling the trigger without first determining that the firearm was not loaded, causing the firearm to discharge, causing a bullet to enter the living area of the adjoining apartment."

The incident occurred Sept. 15, 2017. On Sept. 24, O'Shea's neighbors discovered what appeared to be a fired bullet on their living room floor, according to a police report obtained by Suburban Life Media through a Freedom of Information Act request. They were not home at the time of the incident.

"Judge O'Shea was reckless when he did not open up the revolver and determine there were no bullets in it," Special Prosecutor Dave Neal said. "It was reckless to not empty that firearm."

He also said O'Shea made a series of false statements about how the incident occurred. O'Shea allegedly told an apartment complex staff member the bullet hole was caused by a screwdriver, according to the report.

In response, O'Shea's attorney, Terry Ekl, acknowledged O'Shea "clearly" engaged in misconduct and made inconsistent statements about how the incident happened. However, Ekl said the complaint against O'Shea fails to show his reckless act endangered the life of another person.

"There is no evidence that my client's conduct endangered the life of another person," he said. "They have to prove a conscious or deliberate disregard. He told the police he looked at the chamber, and he thought the gun was unloaded. He accidentally pulled the trigger."

Johnson is set to issue his ruling March 2.