Judge transfers Warner from Mary Davis Home to Henry County Jail
Judge James Cosby signed an order Tuesday transferring a Kewanee woman charged with two counts of Aggravated DUI from the Mary Davis Detention Home in Galesburg to the Henry County Jail.
Jerni Warner, 18, has been in the custody of the juvenile detention center since October 2021, when she was charged in the deaths of a Moline couple, Garry and Leah Kelly, both 42. Warner was 17 when she was operating a vehicle that reportedly crossed over the centerline and struck a motorcycle operated by Garry Kelly. Kelly’s wife, Leah, was a passenger. The incident occurred just outside Kewanee over Labor Day weekend in 2021. Blood and urine tests performed at OSF St. Luke following the accident came up positive for alcohol and cocaine, according to testimony given during the preliminary hearing..
Warner is being tried as an adult, but her former attorney, William Gullberg, filed a motion earlier this year asking that his client be allowed to remain at Mary Davis, even after she turned 18 in February. Henry County State’s Attorney Catherine Runty objected to the motion, asking that Warner be transferred to the jail.
But at the time, Judge Cosby ruled in favor of the defense’s motion, citing an Illinois Statute that requires minors held in jail to be separated from the general population “by sight, sound and otherwise,” a requirement that would have proved difficult for the county. His decision was for Warner to stay confined at Mary Davis Home during the duration of the proceedings.
Just last week, recently-hired Defense Attorney Kevin Sullivan asked the Court to transfer Warner to the HCJ, noting Warner’s health issues and a difficulty at getting transportation to medical appointments as the reasons for the motion. He also requested two furloughs for doctor’s appointments.
Both Runty and Sullivan were in agreement over the transfer, but Judge Cosby requested more information from both attorneys as to whether the statute could be waived or if a Court had the authority to overrule the law.
On Tuesday, Sullivan told the Court that case law cited in the statute gave the Court the authority to transfer Warner into the custody of Henry County. Runty also told the judge that she had better expectations for Warner’s medical care at the jail.
In addition, Warner signed a waiver and verbally affirmed the waiver in court, forgoing the statute restrictions requiring she be separated from the general population. Warner was remanded to the HCJ, where she will be housed with other female inmates.
The next pretrial hearing is scheduled for Sept. 22.
This article originally appeared on Star Courier: Judge transfers Warner from Mary Davis Home to Henry County Jail
