A judge on Monday refused to dismiss the case against Joliet Councilman Juan Moreno but did push back a hearing that could lead to his temporary removal from the City Council.

Will County Judge Jennifer Lynch will hear the request for a temporary restraining order to bar Moreno from the council at 10 a.m. Friday.

“For me to grant you the temporary restraining order would put me in the position of granting the complaint,” Lynch said at a hearing on Monday.

Will County Assistant State’s Attorney Scott Pyles wanted to put Moreno on the witness stand on Monday in an attempt to have him immediately pulled off the council until the case is settled.

Attorneys for Moreno wanted the case dismissed altogether, which Lynch declined to do.

Moreno’s attorneys then wanted more time to prepare their defense.

“This gentleman was duly elected,” said Frank Andreano, one of Moreno’s attorneys. ”I think giving us some time to prepare for a hearing is warranted and prudent."

The state’s attorney’s office in a complaint filed Sept. 16 contends Moreno was not duly elected. He was the top vote-getter in the April election for three at-large councilman.

Pyles said tax and voting records, along with a new driver’s license in August 2024 show Moreno had not lived in Joliet for the required one year before declaring his candidacy in November 2024.

Pyles wanted a hearing before the next regular meeting of the Joliet City Council on Oct. 7, when Moreno would vote on city matters and spending.

“The difficulty that we have here is that Mr. Moreno, at least on the face of it, does not have the authority to execute those powers,” Pyles said.

He describes it as a “really a very simple issue. Did Mr. Moreno live in Joliet 12 months before he filed a statement of candidacy.”

More issues are likely to complicate the case, however, when the hearing is held on Friday.

Moreno at some point moved from a residence at 810 Baskin Drive, which has a Joliet mailing address but actually is outside the city limits and located in unincorporated Troy Township, to 3916 Jonathan Simpson Drive, which is in the city limits of Joliet.

Among the issues that will come into play are whether Moreno needed to live within city limits within one year of the April election or within one year of his November 2024 statement of candidacy.

One matter decided by Lynch on Monday was that the issue was one on which the court could make a ruling.

Moreno’s lawyers argued that any questions about his residency should have been brought before the election to the Joliet electoral board.

“Mr. Moreno has taken the oath of office,” Andreano said. “The time to challenge his nominating petitions has come and gone.”

Judge Lynch, however, decided the matter did fall within the court’s jurisdiction.

Pyles was able to point to previous cases in which residency issues were handled after elections.

“The Illinois legislature has given us jurisdiction,” Pyles said. “The courts have confirmed and ousted people from office.”