Court records reveal that a man on pretrial release for a felony retail theft charge vanished from the Cook County electronic monitoring system for 11 days, only to be discovered in the backyard of Gov. JB Pritzker’s Gold Coast residence.
Despite Chief Judge Charles Beach’s assurance that significant breaches of the electronic monitoring program would be addressed by a judge within 24 hours, 10-time felon Dwayne Milton began breaching his release terms almost immediately after being fitted with an ankle monitor. These infractions persisted for six nights before being reported to the court.
On the night of July 4, Chicago police were called to the governor’s home on North Astor Street to support Illinois State Police, who had detained Milton, 46, for allegedly entering the governor’s property.
According to a state trooper, security cameras showed Milton scaling the rear gate and entering the property, leading to his misdemeanor trespassing charge.
Milton’s criminal history in Cook County includes over 60 cases, with convictions for burglary in 2024, retail theft in 2023, 2014, and 2011, and two robberies in 2005. He reportedly admitted to officers that he was aware of an outstanding warrant for his arrest.
CPD records confirm that Milton was arrested three times between April 5 and May 5 for shoplifting, with the last arrest resulting in a felony retail theft charge. On June 17, Judge Aleksandra Gillespie placed him on electronic monitoring, requiring him to stay home each night until 8 a.m.
A violation report on June 25 noted that Milton began breaching his release conditions almost immediately.
Court records indicate he violated the conditions on the nights of June 18 through 22, with his monitoring device signaling a breach starting at 7 p.m. and “escalating” at 10 p.m., meaning he was believed to be away from home for more than three hours. None of these violations were resolved.
On June 23, Milton again violated the terms at 7 p.m., with an escalation at 12:25 a.m. on June 24. The issue wasn’t cleared until 6:39 a.m. A pretrial officer then reported the violations to Judge Gillespie, who issued a warrant for his arrest on June 25. This warrant was active until Milton’s arrest on July 4.
After assuming office in December, Beach launched a review of the electronic monitoring programs, prompted by a case where a man on electronic monitoring allegedly attacked a woman on a train.
Shortly before the review deadline, Beach announced policy changes, including redefining “major violations” to absences of three hours and requiring judicial review within 24 hours.
However, CWB Chicago later found inconsistencies in adhering to these policies, including in the case of Alphonso Talley, who was AWOL from monitoring and accused of serious crimes before being reported to a judge.
Beach then initiated another internal review regarding these inconsistencies, but its findings have not been disclosed.
Last week, Beach’s office declined to comment on the delay in reporting Milton’s infractions, which allowed him to remain at large.
“Pursuant to Rule 2.10 of the Illinois Code of Judicial Conduct, the Cook County Circuit Court is unable to comment on matters that are pending or impending before the court,” Beach’s office stated. “As the case you reference involves an active matter before the court, we are unable to provide comment on the specific allegations, monitoring records, or judicial decisions associated with it.”
This refusal is questionable as Beach had previously given an interview to WGN-TV about another high-profile case.
In a bid for transparency, Beach disclosed in May that 8% of monitored defendants had gone AWOL, including over 33% of those charged with shoplifting like Milton.
Milton recently pleaded guilty to the felony retail theft charge, receiving a one-year prison sentence from Judge Gillespie. He was credited for 71 days already served, including time under electronic monitoring, and is eligible for a standard sentence reduction.
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