Alton's mayor is receiving some perhaps unwanted national attention after his wife was allegedly caught by police inside a tavern operating in defiance of a state shut down order.
The police raid on Hiram's Tavern happened early on Sunday, just over a day after Mayor Brant Walker ordered a stricter enforcement of the state order on social gatherings.
All those inside the West 3rd Street tavern, including Walker's wife Shannon, were issued a criminal complaint for reckless conduct, a class misdemeanor punishable by up to 364 days in jail and/or a fine of $2,500.
In a statement following the raid, details of which were featured on CNN, NBC and other national news outlets, Walker said that, after he was told of the raid on the tavern, he instructed the police chief "to treat her as he would any citizen violating the 'Stay At Home' order and to ensure that she received no special treatment."
The mayor added, "My wife is an adult capable of making her own decisions, and in this instance she exhibited a stunning lack of judgement.
"She now faces the same consequences for her ill-advised decision as the other individuals who chose to violate the "Stay At Home" order during this incident.
"I am embarrassed by this incident and apologize to the citizens of Alton for any embarrassment this incident may cause our city."
According to the latest figures compiled by the Illinois Department of Public Health, there were 63 confirmed cases of COVID-19, or coronavirus, in Madison County as of Tuesday.
The criminal complaints issued to those in the bar were the first by the Alton Police Department in connection to the stay-at-home order issued by Gov. JB Pritzker.
According to police, several citizen complaints were received over the course of the week and had investigated, but found no unauthorized activity
"However, on Sunday, April 5, at approximately 1 a.m., several individuals were located inside Hiram’s Tavern in an area outside public view, clearly disregarding the executive order and public pleas for compliance," police said.
Two of the individuals in the bar had warrants for their arrest from other counties, but were released at the scene because of the issuing county’s unwillingness to extradite at this time.
The bar’s owner, Hiram Y. Lewis, was found to have an active warrant for his arrest out of Madison County for domestic battery and was taken into custody and transported to the Alton jail, police added.
In his statement, Mayor Walker said, "On Friday, due to the continued increase in cases of COVID-19 in Madison County, as well as increased reports of large gatherings, particularly in some of our city parks, I directed the Alton Police Department to more strictly enforce the Governor's statewide 'Stay At Home'" order through the use of citations.
"At approximately 1 a.m. on Sunday morning, I was informed by the Police Chief that the Alton Police Department was investigating and stopping a social gathering in downtown Alton that was occurring in violation of the provisions of the statewide 'Stay At Home' order.
"I was also made aware that my wife was in attendance at this prohibited social gathering."