Former Clarendon Hills Cop Pleads Not Guilty to Stealing Guns

Former Clarendon Hills police officer Daniel Ryan, who is accused of stealing five guns from the evidence room, pled not guilty Tuesday morning to 11 charges, including two counts of aggravated possession of a stolen firearm, a Class 1 felony.

Ryan’s next hearing is scheduled for July 20 at 9 a.m.

Ryan’s lawyer, Jeff Kendall of the Clarendon Hills firm DiBenedetto & Kendall, PC, said little after the arraignment at the DuPage County Courthouse.

“I think all the facts will come out,” Kendall said. “I can’t really go beyond what happened in court today in terms of discussing it.”

The lawyer did not comment on the case Ryan's defense will make.

Kendall made a motion to request copies of the police reports and investigation materials from the state. Kendall said he received part of them Tuesday and will receive the rest before July 20.

, according to the office of DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin. Berlin’s office, in conjunction with the FBI, joined an ongoing internal Clarendon Hills Police Department investigation into the guns' disappearance after an anonymous tip in February.

In addition to the aggravated possession counts, Ryan is charged with five counts of unlawful possession of a stolen firearm, one count of theft, and three counts of official misconduct.

According to Berlin spokesman Paul Darrah, Ryan could serve up to 15 years in prison if convicted on the Class 1 counts.

The guns Ryan is charged with stealing, according to Berlin's office, are an Ithaca M1911 A1 World War II U.S. Army .45 caliber gun; a .22 caliber Short Butler; a Smith and Wesson .38 caliber Airlight Special; a Mossberg 590 12 gauge shotgun; and a Connecticut Valley Bobcat .50 caliber gun.

Darrah said all the guns were stolen between Jan. 1, 2007, and Dec. 31, 2007.

According to the Clarendon Hills Police Department, none of the guns were used in a crime or were connected to any criminal case. They were given to the department in 1998, 1999, and 2005 by Clarendon Hills residents as part of a turn-in program.  

“Anytime a public servant is charged with a crime it is indeed a sad day,” Berlin was quoted as saying in his office's May 13 release. “I want to make it perfectly clear, however, that these charges are against one man and are not an indictment on an entire police force."