Felon With Gun Passes Out At Stoplight For 2nd Time: Forfeiture

JOLIET, IL — For the second time in three years, 30-year-old convicted felon Dominique Woodard was found sleeping inside his car at a stoplight, with a handgun near his side, according to a new civil forfeiture complaint that aims to make the Joliet man's 2018 Ford Fusion a forfeited asset for the police.

In late May 2018, Patch wrote about Woodard being found sound asleep behind the steering wheel of his car at Gougar Road and Route 30 with his foot resting on the brake pedal and a semiautomatic handgun inside his glove box, according to New Lenox police.

Then, last month, a Joliet officer on night patrol came upon Woodard's 2018 Ford Fusion at a stoplight for Theodore Street and Gaylord Road. The car had its left turning signal blinking, but the motorist did not turn when the light turned green, prosecutors say.

When the traffic light went from red back to green again, the driver still didn't turn, the forfeiture complaint states. When the Joliet officer blew his air horn, the motorist still didn't go.

At that point, the officer turned on his sirens and lights and when he approached the car, he "observed the driver reclined in the driver's seat and appeared to be sleeping," court records show.

The officer knocked and pounded on the driver's window trying to wake up the motorist. When the driver awoke, sat up and lowered his window, the Joliet officer "recognized the driver to be Dominique Woodard, a subject that the officer has had numerous contacts with in his career," the forfeiture stated.

The officer spotted a black semi-automatic handgun in Woodard's lap with an extended magazine, according to court records. At that moment, the officer called for other Joliet police to respond to the scene, and "he told Woodard not to touch the gun," the forfeiture outlined.

When the officer told Woodard to put his hands on the steering wheel, Woodard "turned the shift knob to drive and sped away," the complaint states.

Court documents indicate the Woodard sped west along Theodore Street, and he disregarded a stop sign at Raymond Street and was traveling 30 mph over the posted 30 mph speed limit. After disregarding another stop sign at the frontage road, Joliet officers called off the chase as Woodard neared Caton Farm Road, court records state.

Will County Jail records indicate that Woodard was eventually arrested by Joliet police and put in detention on the night of June 4, on two charges of aggravated fleeing and eluding the police.

Woodard, who lives in the 300 block of North Briggs Street, was freed from the county jail the next day after posting 10 percent of his $50,000 bail.

The forfeiture case involving Woodard's 2018 Ford Fusion will go before a Will County judge on July 14.

Woodard is also still waiting to stand trial at the Will County Courthouse stemming from 2019 charges of being an armed habitual criminal and being a convicted felon in possession of a gun.