Wonder Lake resident accused of kicking officer in the groin, biting another cop

A Wonder Lake resident faces multiple felony counts of aggravated battery to police officers, including punching, biting and kicking one officer in the “groin area,” McHenry County court records show.

Anthony “Autumn” Royce, 34, of the 4700 block of Birch Drive, Wonder Lake, was charged with five counts of aggravated battery to a police officer, four counts of resisting a police officer and battery. Some court documents refer to Royce as Autumn.

Authorities allege Royce kicked a police officer in the “groin area,” spat on his boots, punched his leg and bit another officer’s finger. Police showed up after Royce “shoved [a man’s] head into the ground and repeatedly kicked” him, the criminal complaint alleges.

Aggravated battery to a police officer is a Class 2 felony that can result in a punishment of up to seven years in prison and up to $25,000 in fines for each count.

The state’s attorney’s office requested pretrial release conditions including that the defendant be on electronic monitoring, receive an anger management evaluation and surrender any firearms or other dangerous weapons.

McHenry County Assistant State’s Attorney Julio Cantre said Royce “should sit in jail” until trial, but that the alleged offenses are not detainable under the SAFE-T Act. Cantre brought up what he described as Royce’s history of battery including in Wisconsin. Royce was found guilty of battery or threatening a judge, prosecutor or police officer in Walworth County, Wisconsin, in 2017 and was sentenced to three years in prison, according to Wisconsin court records.

Royce also was charged with domestic battery in 2022 in McHenry County and served 14 days in jail earlier this year, court records show.

Judge Carl Metz agreed to the pretrial release conditions, saying the defendant’s “history is significant.” The judge changed Royce’s curfew hours to be from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. rather than the prosecutor’s proposed noon to 9 a.m. so that Royce, whose job was described as regional retail specialist and radio DJ, still can go to work.

Royce is set to appear in court on Nov. 19.