Springfield, Illinois — The Springfield, Illinois Police Department’s Street Crimes Unit is being accused of targeting people on the East Side of Springfield and turning minor traffic offenses into an opportunity to conduct traffic stops in order to search their vehicles for contraband or firearms.
According to police reports, on July 8, 2024, around 7:47 p.m., Springfield Police Officers Sgt. Michael R. Raynolds and Patrol Officer Corey Cortes reported that they observed a black Nissan sedan traveling southbound in the 1000 block of N. 9th Street. The vehicle had heavily tinted passenger-side windows, which appeared to be illegal. Sgt. Raynolds noted that, as he was driving northbound on 9th Street and observed the Nissan with visibly illegal window tints, the driver’s window was partially rolled down. The driver looked at their vehicle and continued to look toward them after passing. Sgt. Raynolds noted, “From my training and experience, I know that subjects who are in possession of illegal contraband, specifically firearms and narcotics, will view police and then continue to watch officers for their reaction.” Sgt. Raynolds then stated that he conducted a U-turn based on Ardell Hampton Jr.’s eye contact, got behind the vehicle, and exited his squad car to approach the driver’s door. “As I got out of the vehicle, the driver also got out of his vehicle. I told the driver he needed to stop because I was conducting a traffic stop. The driver advised that he did not need to stop. I then observed the subject (Ardell) bending down for a second, and I believed he was bending down to discard evidence and flee on foot. I know from my training and experience that subjects who possess illegal contraband will commonly distance themselves from their vehicle. However, surveillance video from Oscar’s Corner Store does not show that the officers had their red/blue emergency lights on when they conducted their traffic stop.”
In Officer Cortes’s report, he stated that Ardell quickly exited the vehicle and attempted to walk away, and that Sgt. Raynolds “gave him several lawful orders to stay in the vehicle and to stop walking away.” Officer Cortes also noted, “I know based on my training and experience that subjects illegally possessing firearms or contraband often attempt to quickly distance themselves from it.” However, after searching Ardell’s vehicle, officers did not find any contraband or firearms.
Officer Cortes wrote that Ardell instantly became hostile and argumentative, refused to comply with lawful orders, and attempted to “walk away even after being advised that they were conducting a traffic stop, meaning he was detained.” According to the body-worn camera footage, it appears that Ardell got out of the vehicle, dropped his keys, and bent down to pick them up. Officers then approached him, grabbed him, asked if he had something illegal on him, took him to the ground, and cuffed him. While on the ground, they asked him, “Do you have a gun on you?”
Officer Cortes continues in his report, writing, “Based on my observations, I believed that Ardell was fighting with police due to having contraband on his person and potentially a firearm. I attempted to grab his right arm, but he kept it close to his body, and I was unable to obtain control of his arm. Ardell had a significant height advantage over us, and to prevent him from continuing to fight and to de-escalate the situation, I grabbed Ardell by his head and the hoodie of his sweatshirt and pulled him to the ground.”
Ardell was initially transported to the Springfield Police Department because he told officers he was a juvenile. However, officers confirmed he was 20 years old and transported him to the Sangamon County Jail. At the Sangamon County Jail, Ardell complained of a headache and wanted to go to the hospital. Ardell was returned to the officer’s squad car and eventually given a notice to appear in court. He was also asked if he wanted a ride to the hospital, but he refused. He was then told that his mother and father were at the Springfield Police Department, given directions, and instructed to walk there.
Community Activist, Samuel Johnson, compares the current situation to the issues faced by former Sangamon County Sheriff Sean Grayson in Logan County, Illinois. Grayson is accused of murdering Sonya Massey in her home after believing she intended to throw a pot of hot water at him. In Logan County, it was reported that “Grayson stated he saw a woman suspiciously slide down in her seat in a parked pickup truck after making eye contact with him.” Johnson questions, “Are we now pulling people over and targeting them because of eye contact?”
Johnson also mentioned that, prior to this incident, he had attempted to reach out to Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher, as well as former Mayor Jim Langfelder, about the “Jump Out Boys” to arrange a meeting on policing and potential changes on the East Side. However, his calls, text messages, and emails have gone unanswered. When asked if he still wants to have this discussion with Mayor Buscher, Johnson replied, “Yes, I would still like to sit down and discuss an executive order that would establish a relationship between the Mayor’s office and the community, aiming to build solutions for the problems that persist between the police department and the citizens they are meant to protect.”
Johnson also stressed the need for stop receipts to be given to citizens who have encounters with the police. Johnson cited an Illinois law (725 ILCS 5/107-14), which states:
Temporary questioning without arrest. (a) A peace officer, after having identified himself as a peace officer, may stop any person in a public place for a reasonable period of time when the officer reasonably infers from the circumstances that the person is committing, is about to commit or has committed an offense as defined in Section 102-15 of this Code, and may demand the name and address of the person and an explanation of his actions. Such detention and temporary questioning will be conducted in the vicinity of where the person was stopped. (b) Upon completion of any stop under subsection (a) involving a frisk or search, and unless impractical, impossible, or under exigent circumstances, the officer shall provide the person with a stop receipt which provides the reason for the stop and contains the officer's name and badge number. This subsection (b) does not apply to searches or inspections for compliance with the Fish and Aquatic Life Code, the Wildlife Code, the Herptiles-Herps Act, or searches or inspections for routine security screenings at facilities or events. For the purposes of this subsection (b), "badge" means an officer's department issued identification number associated with his or her position as a police officer with that department.
Hampton is being represented by Attorney Sara Vig of Vig Law P.C., which is located at 1100 S. 5th St. in Springfield, IL.
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