March 28, 2024
Crime & Courts | Northwest Herald


Crime & Courts

Outlaws Motorcycle Club seeks patches seized in Wonder Lake bar fight case

WOODSTOCK – Outlaws Motorcycle Club asked a McHenry County judge to order the return of club patches and insignia that were seized when six members were arrested in connection with a bar brawl.

As part of a plea agreement in which two club members received a year of conditional discharge, Luciano Flores and Robert Bellmore agreed to forfeit any club-related property seized as a result of their arrest.

But Joel Rabb, the attorney for the American Outlaws Association, said the bikers had no right to give up property that wasn’t theirs. Upon entry to the club, Rabb said in court documents, members are issued patches embroidered with club logos, but the patches belong to the club.

“For you and I, it might seem trivial,” Rabb said outside the courtroom. “But if you’re a Christian, the Bible is sacred. … To these people, this is family, this is how they identify themselves. Regarding the patches, it is something that they’ve earned.”

The judge ultimately sided with Assistant State’s Attorney Robert Zalud who objected to returning the patches for a number of reasons, the biggest being the organization was attempting to seek a civil remedy in a criminal courtroom.

McHenry County Judge Sharon Prather agreed, telling Rabb the criminal case was closed, but added that he was not without other remedies. Rabb didn’t indicate whether the club would pursue the matter in civil court.

Zalud said the sheriff’s office doesn’t return contraband to street gangs.

“The McHenry County Outlaws are gang members, they continue to do nothing but commit crimes in this county,” Zalud said, prompting an objection from Rabb, who later said that the prosecutor’s characterization was unfair.

In addition to Flores and Bellmore, four other Outlaws members faced charges stemming from the 2013 bar fight in Wonder Lake. A woman, Kathleen McKevitt, also received conditional discharge for her role. Charges against three others were dropped.

The Outlaw motorcycle group is no stranger to criminal activity in McHenry County. Two members were responsible for the 1993 deaths of Morris and Ruth Gauger, in one of the county’s more controversial murder cases.

The Gaugers' son, Gary, was convicted and sent to death row for the crime, but Gauger eventually was cleared after federal authorities implicated the Outlaw members for the murders as part of a sweeping racketeering investigation.

Former Gov. George Ryan pardoned Gauger for the slayings in 2002, and he has since become an outspoken opponent of the death penalty.