Illinois police sergeant Marlene Rittmanic was begging for her life moments before she was shot dead with her own firearm by a gunman in a hotel last week, according to documents obtained by Fox News.
On Monday, Kankakee County State’s Attorney Jim Rowe said in court that Sgt. Rittmanic was pleading with the suspects at the time Sullivan fired the fatal shots into her. Sgt. Rittmanic was begging the suspects to just leave, saying ‘you don’t have to do this, please just go, please don’t please don’t.’ She was desperately pleading for her life.”
On December 29, 49-year-old Bradley police Sgt. Marlene Rittmanic and her 27-year-old partner, Officer Tyler Bailey, were shot while responding to a noise complaint regarding barking dogs that were left in a vehicle at Comfort Inn Hotel along a highway in Kankakee County. Rittmanic and her partner located the room where the car’s possible owner was staying and were attacked and shot while talking to the people in that room, the sheriff’s office said.
The two officers were rushed to the nearest hospitals, where Rittmanic was pronounced dead, and Bailey was said to be in critical condition and underwent surgery, the Bradley Police Department said.
An official request was submitted by Rowe on Monday to federal prosecutors, asking them to review the pending first-degree murder cases against suspects Darius Sullivan and Xandria Harris, who are charged in the killing of Rittmanic. In addition, Rowe asked prosecutors to pursue a federal death sentence for both defendants, FOX 32 Chicago reported.
Rittmanic, who previously spent seven years as a deputy with the Iroquois County Sheriff’s Department, joined the Bradley Police Department in 2007 and was promoted to sergeant in 2014, said Lt. Philip Trudeau, a department spokesman.
Meanwhile, Illinois police warn about fraudulent GoFundMe pages being created by scammers using Sgt. Rittmanic’s name. There is one legitimate GoFundMe page set up by the family of her critically injured partner, 27-year-old Officer Bailey.
