Woodstock man sentenced to 3 years in prison on domestic battery charge

A former Woodstock man who previously served time for domestic battery and spitting on a McHenry County judge in 2016 has been sentenced to prison again, this time getting three years after pleading guilty in another domestic battery case.

McHenry County Judge Michael Coppedge sentenced Jonathan A. Pease, 41, to three years in prison after he agreed to a negotiated plea deal on Friday.

Pease was released from the Dixon Correctional Center in September 2021 and was on parole in May when he was charged with aggravated battery to a person 60 years or older and domestic battery with previous convictions, Illinois Department of Corrections and McHenry County court records show.

Pease had been sentenced in 2020 to three years in prison for striking a person over age 60, court records show. The victim then was the same as in the most recent case, court records show. Pease had been accused of hitting the man and causing a laceration on the top of the man’s head and ear.

Pease previously had been incarcerated for three years for spitting on McHenry County Judge Mark Gerhardt’s face and robe during a bond hearing in 2016.

In the most recent case, Pease told a clinical psychologist in August that he had arrived at the Woodstock home to hang out with the victim even though his presence violated his parole, the psychologist said in her report looking at his fitness to stand trial.

Pease said he requested money for a ride and the two began arguing about whether Pease needed to go to drug rehab, the report stated. Pease said he refused because he didn’t think he needed to go.

Pease was accused of shoving the other man during this encounter, court records show.

He pleaded guilty Friday to domestic battery, a class 3 felony, as part of a negotiated plea. The other charge – aggravated battery to a person 60 years or older, also a class 3 felony – was dismissed.

The plea deal comes after Pease was found fit to stand trial on Nov. 30.

Pease, who previously been found unfit, has been diagnosed with a schizophrenic disorder and has a history of auditory hallucinations and “delusional beliefs,” the psychologist said in her August report.

Coppedge sentenced Pease to three years in prison and four years of mandatory supervised release, the order shows. Pease must serve at least 50% of the term and will receive credit for the 211 days he has spent in custody.

Pease’s public defender, Matthew Feda, declined comment.