(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — As temperatures fell well below zero on Sunday, a neighbor asked the Lake County Sheriff’s Office to check on a home on North High Ridge Drive in unincorporated Lake Zurich, which had no running water and no heat.
Deputy Chief Chris Covelli said the occupants were immediately put off by the police presence.
“They didn't want any services,” Covelli said. “They didn't want the sheriff's office to be there. They said that they were OK, although … they had no utilities, no heat, no running water inside the home.”
One of the deputies went to her car and came back with some documents on resources available for struggling families when a man inside the home attacked her.
“Initially throwing a piece of wood at her, which she was able to duck out of the way not to be struck, but as she ducked, she fell backward in the snow,” he said. “And this 30-year-old man, right away, jumped on top of her and started punching her in the face.”
Two other deputies tried to use a taser to subdue the man but ended up tackling him.
The female deputy was treated and is now recovering at home.
Covelli told WBBM the attack underscores the risks police officers face every single day.
“She was there to provide support services,” he said. “She's trying to help a family that appears to be struggling. They don't have utilities inside this house. It's below zero. And she was attacked by an individual. So, very bizarre.”
Charges against the 30-year-old man are pending.
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