Harris found in direct criminal contempt of court

KANKAKEE – Xandria Harris arrived in the courtroom Thursday in an orange jumpsuit, handcuffed in the front and her legs shackled, before a sheriff’s officer undid both and she was seated with her attorneys.

It was a stark reminder of the gravity of the case, as Harris, 29, was appearing in Kankakee Circuit Judge Kathy Bradshaw-Elliott’s courtroom in the Kankakee County Courthouse for a bench trial related to a direct criminal contempt of court charge.

Harris, of Bradley, was on trial for the direct criminal contempt of court in the case of Darius Sullivan, who eventually was found guilty this past year in the murder of Bradley Police Sgt. Marlene Rittmanic and the attempted murder and serious injuring of now-retired Sgt. Tyler Bailey.

Sullivan was sentenced to natural life in prison for Rittmanic’s death and 80 years for the attempted murder of Bailey.

Both Rittmanic and Bailey were shot Dec. 30, 2021, when they answered a call about barking dogs in a vehicle outside the Comfort Inn hotel property near the Northfield Square mall.

Harris refused to answer questions in Sullivan’s trial despite being granted use immunity for her testimony. Use immunity means that her testimony under oath couldn’t be used against Harris in her trial.

Harris is accused of aiding her boyfriend, Sullivan, when he shot Rittmanic and Bailey. She is facing murder and child endangerment charges. Her trial for that case is set for September.

After testimony by Kankakee County State’s Attorney Jim Rowe and Harris’ defense attorney Cierra Norris on Thursday, Bradshaw-Elliott found Harris in direct criminal contempt of court.

“Because it is in the view of the court and what’s been admitted, the transcript by the state and what’s been stipulated by Ms. Norris, all occurred in my courtroom in front of me,” Bradshaw-Elliott said. “And based on that, I am going to show that the state has proved the petition for adjudication of direct criminal contempt.”

Bradshaw-Elliott summarized that when the state files a use immunity document against a witness, the defense can’t object, and the court can’t deny it based on case law. The state also asked that Harris be allowed to testify outside the presence of the jury.

Both times, Harris refused to answer any of Rowe’s questions during Sullivan’s trial.

“And she at first said, ‘I’m going to take the Fifth,’ ” Bradshaw-Elliott said. “And then I said, ‘You can’t take the Fifth because you’ve been given use immunity.’ And we had several conversations with her, and then I asked her if she was refusing to testify, and she very clearly said she was refusing to testify. And that all occurred in front of me in this courtroom under oath.”

Rowe testified about his attempts to ask Harris questions, saying that he had 148 questions to ask her. He said she was called to testify Sept 23, 2024, in the midst of the People vs. Darius Sullivan trial.

Rowe asked the judge to admonish the witness because she had no right to plead the Fifth Amendment in the case since she had been granted use immunity.

“That would be the evidence, judge, that the state is presenting under case law,” Rowe said Thursday.

Norris argued, as in previous motions in the case, that Harris is a victim of domestic violence.

“The only thing I’d like to add to that is that Miss Harris has never made a statement to police, to the state or to her counsel,” Norris said. “As of today, as to this incident, we’re still just barreling through the large amounts of discovery, as well as building her defense and in contact, and working with her expert for domestic violence.”

A hearing will be at 1:30 p.m. May 9 to set a sentencing date for Harris. Four different dates in July and August were discussed for possible sentencing day.