Prosecutors are opposing a request from a former Joliet police officer to expunge and impound a 2017 case where he was found not guilty of recklessly firing a gun during a domestic dispute.

Will County Judge John Connor may consider on June 26 whether to expunge the case at the request of former Officer Nicholas Crowley, 45, who filed a petition to destroy or seal the case on April 16.

Crowley’s petition checked off a box that said, “I was found factually innocent in the case I am asking to expunge.”

On June 11, prosecutors with Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow’s Office filed an objection to Crowley’s request. The 2017 case was not prosecuted by Glasgow’s office but by Special Prosecutor Lorinda Lamken.

The two-page objection from Glasgow’s office said the judge’s decision to expunge a case may consider the following factors:

• Strength of the state’s case

• State’s reasons for wishing to retain the records

• Petitioner’s age, criminal history and employment history.

• Length of time since the arrest

• Adverse consequences the petitioner may face if the expungement is not granted

“Based on the relevant factors, while eligible for expungement and/or sealing, the court should exercise his discretion and deny the petition,” according to prosecutors’ motion.

Last February, Crowley was fired from the Joliet Police Department following an investigation of information and documents provided by Joliet Police Officer Cassandra Socha, according to records provided to Shaw Local in a Freedom of Information Act request.

In 2017, Crowley was arrested in Joliet on charges of domestic battery of Socha, who was his fiancée at the time, criminal damage to Socha’s TV and reckless discharge of a firearm into the ceiling of their townhome.

Socha signed a domestic violence complaint form that alleged Crowley physically abused her. During Crowley’s trial, Socha testified she was ordered to fill out the domestic violence form, but she acknowledged she was not told what to say on it, according to court transcripts.

During the internal affairs investigation, Socha said she did not remember whether Crowley hit her, and she believed the injuries to her face were caused by her pit bull, which was present during the incident, according to a 2017 report from former Joliet Deputy Police Chief Marc Reid.

Reid’s report said he did not find Socha’s injuries “consistent with a dog nipping at her face.”

Crowley denied hitting Socha during the incident, according to Reid’s report.

A grand jury later found no probable cause of domestic battery and criminal damage to the TV after hearing testimony from Socha and several other people. Grand jury proceedings are confidential.

In 2018, Crowley decided to have a judge instead of a jury decide the reckless discharge of a firearm charge. Will County Chief Judge Dan Kennedy found Crowley not guilty of the offense.

Kennedy ruled there was “no direct evidence of how the gun was discharged” during the 2017 incident.

Socha was the only witness to the domestic dispute between her and Crowley. He chose not to testify at trial.

During Socha’s direct and cross-examination, she did not testify to seeing Crowley holding or firing a gun, according to court transcripts. She said she could “not really” see Crowley in the kitchen because the lights were off except for an oven light.

Socha said her pit bull had been acting aggressively during the incident, she “bear hugged” the dog, and Crowley told her to keep the dog away from him.

Socha said after the dog had bit her, she “heard a gunshot” and then heard Crowley say, “Oh [expletive],” and “Are you okay?” which made her think “it was an accident.”

The outcome of Crowley’s court case stood in contrast to the internal affairs case, where Crowley was under police orders to answer questions.

Reid’s memo to former Joliet Police Chief Brian Benton said his investigation sustained allegations of Crowley recklessly firing a gun; domestic battery; criminal damage to property; failing to provide notice of a firearm discharge; and drawing and displaying a firearm without reasonable cause.

Benton signed the memo about a month after Crowley’s trial. The memo noted Crowley would receive a 30-day suspension.

Socha told investigators she did not see Crowley fire the gun, according to Reid’s report.

During Crowley’s internal affairs interview, he said he grabbed his on-duty firearm during the 2017 incident because he believed Socha’s dog was going to attack him, but he held it “up and away” from Socha and the dog, according to a transcript of the interview.

Crowley said he saw the dog make a “second biting motion” toward Socha’s face, and he “tensed up” because he thought he was going to get bitten, according to the transcript.

Crowley said when he “flinched, the weapon went off,” a round from the gun “discharged” and the dog ran off, according to the transcript.

When Crowley was asked why he didn’t report the shooting to the department’s communication center, he said he had “a lot going on in my head,” he was upset and the “policy was just not on my head.”