Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1999. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
The Chicago Tribune - October 21, 1999
Art Barnum, Tribune Staff Writer
He is the only person in DuPage ever charged with attempted transmission of HIV under an Illinois law enacted in 1989 and later upheld by the state Supreme Court.
Under the law, prosecutors may charge someone who is aware that he or she is HIV-positive and engages in activities--including intimate contact, donating blood or sharing dirty needles--that could transmit the virus. Illinois prosecutors, however, have rarely used the law to charge people for criminal transmission of HIV, choosing instead to charge them with crimes such as aggravated battery or even attempted murder.
In the Willowbrook case, police were called to the apartment of Jerome Murphy, 36, of the 6300 block of Americana Drive on June 24 after receiving a report about an attempted suicide.
When they arrived Murphy was in the kitchen with a cut on his right wrist. According to the police report, Murphy and the kitchen floor were covered in blood.
Officers Christopher Drake and Paul Oggerino arrived at the same time as paramedics and tried to calm Murphy, who police said had made similar attempts in the past and had threatened to spread the HIV virus to police and medical personnel.
Oggerino told DuPage Judge Ann Jorgensen that Murphy was uncooperative and had to be physically restrained with handcuffs, while he was being placed on a medical transport gurney.
According to the police report, Murphy made repeated attempts to splatter his blood on the officers and made verbal threats to them. At Hinsdale Hospital, where Murphy was taken for treatment of his wounds, his physical resistance and verbal threats continued, Oggerino said.
After the incident, a grand jury indicted Murphy on counts of aggravated battery of a police officer and attempted transmission of the HIV virus, which carries a prison sentence ranging from 2 to 5 years. Because of a prior, unrelated conviction, however, Murphy could have been sentenced to as many as 10 years in prison.
On Wednesday, Murphy pleaded guilty and senior assistant public defender Harriet Gustafson asked for a short prison sentence. She told Jorgensen that the blood on Murphy and the kitchen was present before the officers arrived and that dealing with people with HIV is part of a police officer's job.
She also pointed out that Murphy was drunk at the time, with hospital records showing he had a blood-alcohol level of .30, well above the state limit of .08 at which someone is considered legally drunk.
According to Assistant State's Atty. Jennifer Hulvat, the officers have been regularly monitored and tested for the HIV virus. Although Hulvat would not comment on their HIV status, others said both policemen show no sign of the virus. Their medical testing, however, will continue.
"We can't imagine the emotional anguish of these officers," said Hulvat, who asked for a lengthy prison sentence. "He poses a real danger to those he comes in contact with, even those trying to help him."
Murphy stood quietly during the hearing, except to offer a short apology to the officers.
"I accept that it would have been impossible not to have been exposed," Jorgensen said. "It is not a crime to leave a trail of blood, but it is a crime to intentionally try to pass it on, to try and transmit it to police."
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