Suit: Woman was illegally detained after reporting off-duty cop’s erratic driving

A woman who alerted authorities about an off-duty cop who allegedly had an episode of road rage in Matteson was illegally detained, according to a federal lawsuit filed Thursday.

On June 26, the woman exited I-57 at Sauk Trail Road in south suburban Matteson when an off-duty South Chicago Heights police officer drove erratically and cursed at the plaintiff, saying that “she would be sorry when the police got her,” the suit said.

The officer was not in uniform and was on his way to work in South Chicago Heights, the suit said.

According to the suit, the incident was relayed to South Chicago Heights dispatchers after the woman called 911. However, the off-duty officer called his coworker – who was on duty – on his personal cell to detain the woman, the suit claims.

That officer – along with several others – stopped the woman’s vehicle near the intersection of Sauk Trail and Chicago Road in South Chicago Heights, the suit said. The woman was then handcuffed for about 45 minutes and about “three or four” squad cars were present, the suit claims. She was not charged with a crime or given any traffic citations, the suit said.

The woman claims officers harassed and humiliated her during the stop, the suit said.

The 14-count suit is seeking unspecified damages and lists the Village of South Chicago Heights, six South Chicago Heights police officers, two Cook County Sheriff officers, the Cook County Sheriff’s office and Cook County.