Delnor nurses conceal co-worker suspected in DUI crash to keep deputies from talking to her

GENEVA – Nurses at Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital in Geneva apparently concealed a fellow nurse from a suspected drunken driving crash by not letting Kane County Sheriff’s deputies know where she was so they could not talk to her, releasing her from the emergency room without treatment and getting her a ride home, according to sheriff’s reports.

Jillian C. Gillis, 35, of the 4200 block of Dobbins Street, Plano, was charged May 4 with driving under the influence and improper lane use. She is scheduled to appear in court June 9, court records show.

According to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation records, Gillis is a registered professional nurse as of July 20, 2011.

In an emailed statement, Sheriff Ron Hain said: “The Sheriff’s Office shared the concern the following day with Delnor/Northwestern management, who swiftly initiated an investigation and brought undisclosed action against the involved employees. The criminal investigations is considered on-going.”

In an emailed statement, Northwestern Medicine spokesman Christopher King said:

We take these matters seriously. Once we learned of this situation, we conducted an internal review and took appropriate action. Our internal policies and procedures prevent us from commenting further.”

Deputies were called to Main Street Road just west of Bunker Road in Blackberry Township shortly before 10:30 p.m. on May 1 for a black 2019 Jeep Cherokee that was in a ditch, the report stated.

An off-duty St. Charles officer told deputies that he knocked on the Jeep’s window for 10 to 15 minutes, but the female driver, later identified as Gillis, did not wake up until Elburn paramedics arrived, the report stated.

Deputies observed that the Jeep was in the north ditch headed west and appeared to have gone off the road several hundred feet east of where it stopped, the report stated.

Deputies also observed that its passenger side tires were shredded, the report stated.

Deputies “smelled a strong odor of alcoholic beverage emitting from the area (in the ambulance) where Jillian’s face was,” the report stated. “I observed her eyes were bloodshot and watery and I observed her face to be flushed.”

Deputies found a case of Miller Lite Beer and some bottles of wine in the back seat of the Jeep, the report stated.

A paramedic told the deputy that Gillis said she had “a lot” to drink when he asked how much alcohol she had, the report stated.

Elburn paramedics took Gillis to Delnor, the report stated.

“At Delnor, I asked a few nurses where Jillian was and I immediately noticed that they were stalling and wouldn’t tell me what room Jillian was in. After a few minutes, I asked again and I was told they didn’t treat Jillian and that she was a nurse at Delnor,” the report stated. “I was able to speak to (the) Elburn paramedic … who advised me that they transported Jillian due to her condition and he thought it was abnormal that Jillian was released from Delnor so quickly.”

The deputy further learned from paramedics who were on scene that Gillis stumbled out of the Jeep as they walked her to the ambulance, and that she was confused and her speech was slowed, the report stated.

“She would ask, ‘What happened?’ multiple times like she didn’t know where she was,” the report stated. “One of the medics had to put (her) car in park from the back seat because she didn’t (or) couldn’t listen to their instructions. … (and) when she stepped out of the Jeep, she had to grab one of the medics for balance, otherwise she would have fallen.”

The deputy asked dispatch to have Plano police check to see when Gillis was home, and shortly after 1 a.m. on May 2, Plano notified the deputy that she was home, the report stated.

The deputy arrived at Gillis’s home in Plano shortly before 1:30 a.m. May 2, where three Plano officers also were present, and the deputy read Gillis her rights, the report stated.

Gillis asked if she was under arrest; the deputy told her she was.

“Due to the totality of the circumstances, I issued Jillian a citation for improper lane use and a citation for DUI alcohol,” the report stated.

“I observed her to be intoxicated and she had a moderate odor of alcoholic beverage emitting from her breath,” the report stated. Jillian advised she understood her rights and she would answer my questions. Jillian first advised she was at a friend’s house in Geneva and she was driving home.”

Gillis admitted to drinking about three or four “good drinks” but later said she drank champagne and wine between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., the report stated.

After the deputy told her the passerby knocked on her car window at about 10:30 p.m., Gillis changed her drinking period to between 4 p.m. and 9:30 p.m., the report stated.

“Jillian also advised that she didn’t remember much as well,” the report stated. “Jillian also advised me that she is a supervisor at Delnor.”

According to Secretary of State records, Gillis has no convictions for DUI.