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Will County — Former Will County correctional officer Daniel Herod, 41, appeared in court Tuesday after his legal team requested the appointment of a special prosecutor for his case.
Herod, a resident of Elwood, is charged with predatory sexual assault of a child and possession of child sex abuse materials and was fired from the Will County Sheriff’s Office last month.
Herod’s attorney Neil Patel filed a petition for a special prosecutor to be appointed to the case on April 29, suggesting a conflict of interest exists in the case given Herod’s former job and the department’s close ties to the Will County State’s Attorney’s office.
Herod appeared in court before Judge Vincent Cornelius on Tuesday where defense attorneys requested a continuance to allow the state more time to respond to the request for the special prosecutor.
Representatives of the state’s attorney’s office did not object to the extended timeline.
Herod’s attorneys also did not make any challenges to the former officer’s pretrial detention status at this time. He remains held in the Kankakee County Jail.
Herod’s continued pretrial detention is something Cornelius said “remains necessary.”
Herod will next appear in court on June 3.