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Monday, May 26, 2014
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Deputy fires at armed DeKalb man Cousin says gunman was having a ‘nervous breakdown’
By KATIE DAHLSTROM kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com and JILLIAN DUCHNOWSKI jduchnowski@shawmedia.com DeKALB – Cynthia Tyler said her cousin Hassan Coleman was erratic and suicidal when he showed up at her son’s apartment with a gun Saturday. “He was kind of having a psychotic nervous breakdown,” Tyler said about Coleman, 23, of the 1300 block of West Lincoln Highway in DeKalb. “But he is a good kid.” A DeKalb County Sheriff’s
deputy shot Coleman in the arm Saturday when authorities say he threatened them with a pistol after holing up inside a Suburban Estates apartment building. Coleman was taken by ambulance to Kishwaukee Hospital and later to Rockford Memorial Hospital with injuries that weren’t life-threatening, police said. On Sunday, Tyler said Coleman had surgery on his arm and is recovering. A hospital representative could not
comment on Coleman’s condition. Coleman is charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon and aggravated assault, DeKalb County State’s Attorney Richard Schmack said. The shooting happened after police said they responded to a call that a man armed with a gun was inside the complex on Twombly Road west of Glidden Road about 1 p.m. Saturday. When police arrived, citizens helped them
identify the apartment in building 23 and police tried to make contact with Tyler and her sons, ages 18 and 22, who were in the apartment. Tyler said she and her sons were trying to calm Coleman down, but didn’t know what caused him to become suicidal. She also did not know who called police. Police called Tyler from outside the apartment about 2 p.m. When she came outside, police kept her there and called her sons to come
outside. Tyler said Coleman, a Kishwaukee College student who also worked parttime, only threatened himself. Coleman did not hold Tyler and her sons hostage or harm them, police said. Tyler said police moved her and her sons around a corner where they could not see the apartment. She recalled hearing only one gun shot. The next thing she remembered was seeing Coleman on a gurney.
GRADUATION 2014 Sycamore
‘A moment to remember’
“I didn’t want them to hurt him, but he was threatening to hurt himself,” Tyler said. “The police were following their protocol. It worked out for the best. He’s going to get the help he needs.” According to police, the deputy shot Coleman in defense of himself and others after Coleman threatened them. The Illinois State Police are investigating the shooting, as is typical when an officer shoots a weapon. An Illinois State Police representative did not return requests for comment Sunday.
Truck crashes into Sycamore eatery; damage about $100K By KATIE DAHLSTROM kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com
Photos by Ryan Gaines for Shaw Media
Sycamore High School Class of 2014 graduate Chloe Anisha Taylor Albert listens to a speaker during commencement Sunday at the Sycamore Fieldhouse.
Sycamore graduates reflect as they look to future By KATIE DAHLSTROM kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com
Sycamore High School Class of 2014 graduate Maddie White sits after speaking during her class’s Commencement Program Sunday at the Sycamore Fieldhouse.
SYCAMORE – The most important things Zariah Bradley learned in her time at Sycamore High School didn’t come from textbooks. As the Sycamore High School graduate prepared to walk across the stage in the field house Sunday to receive her diploma, the lessons she remembered the most were those she learned from the experience. “High school taught me a lot,” Bradley said. “Be yourself, go for what you want and live for you.” Bradley was one of 276 seniors to graduate from Sycamore High School on Sunday.
After taking a vacation, Bradley plans to attend Northern Illinois University to study psychology, criminology and sociology. Eventually, she would like to work with kids or in a prison. Having big dreams and the confidence to pursue them is one of the distinguishing features of the class of 2014, District 427 Superintendent Kathy Countryman said. During her speech to graduates, Countryman applauded them for making excellence “business as usual” at Sycamore High School “One, that you find your passion both in your work and personal life,” Countryman said. “Two, that
See GRADUATION, page A10
SYCAMORE – A truck used to haul portable toilets caused about $100,000 in damage when it plowed into the front of Taxco Restaurant about 6 a.m. today. A tenant living in one of the apartments above the Mexican restaurant at 223 W. State St. called owner Jesus Romero after feeling the building shake from the impact. No one was at the restaurant at the time and the tenants in apartments upstairs were unharmed. “I was very scared,” Romero said. “This is my dream business. But I was glad it happened when it did. No one was in the restaurant or on the street. It could have been way worse.” Sycamore police officer Michael Eide would not disclose how many people were in the truck at the time of the crash, but said no one appeared to be seriously injured. He also did not comment on the cause or any citations that might have been issued. Romero’s insurance agent, Larry Forsberg of Partridge Insurance, said the truck was heading west on State Street when the driver lost control of the vehicle and did a U-turn in front of Elleson’s Bakery at 44 W. State St. The vehicle started heading east on State Street, smashed into a stop light, parking meter and planter at the corner of State and Somonauk streets before crashing into Taxco’s main entrance, Forsberg said. The truck smashed several large glass windows, pushed the non-structural walls out of place and damaged the brick
See CRASH, page A10
Katie Dahlstrom - kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com
Taxco Restaurant owner Jesus Romero assesses the damage caused by a truck crashing into his restaurant, at 223 W. State St., on Sunday morning.
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