A Will County judge has delivered a major setback to prosecutors in the case against Jon William Hansen, the Shorewood man accused in the January 2024 Joliet shootings, after ruling that key DNA evidence tied to a handgun trigger was mishandled and destroyed.
On June 24, Judge Jessica Colon‑Sayre granted a defense motion that sharply limits how prosecutors can use the DNA work at trial. Defense attorneys say the Joliet Crime Lab prepared DNA testing on a sample from a handgun trigger, then destroyed that material without notifying them, despite a court order.
According to WJOL, Hansen’s lawyers at the Tomczak Law Group told the court the lab began preparing DNA testing on April 19, 2025 and "ultimately destroyed the DNA evidence" taken from the trigger on June 4, 2025. The defense pushed for dismissal of the murder counts or serious sanctions, arguing the court’s prior order had been violated. Will County State’s Attorney James W. Glasgow said his office is reviewing the ruling and what it means for the case.
What the court said
Judge Colon‑Sayre did not mince words about the Joliet Crime Lab’s conduct. She found the handling of the DNA sample "reckless" and "negligent," according to WJOL. The court is expected to tell jurors that the lab violated a court order and that they should consider any destroyed or unavailable DNA results as evidence that would have been favorable to Hansen.
The Tomczak Law Group told reporters that instruction could seriously undercut the prosecution’s forensic case, giving the defense a powerful tool to challenge whatever science the state still tries to put in front of the jury.
How this ties back to the Joliet shootings
The charges against Hansen stem from a Jan. 21, 2024 shooting rampage in which Romeo Alexander Nance is accused of killing seven of his relatives and another man. Authorities said Nance died by suicide the next day. Hansen was arrested May 31, 2024 and faces first‑degree murder and related charges in connection with two of the shootings, as detailed by the Associated Press.
Legal fallout and next steps
The DNA dispute is not the first time defense attorneys have clashed with forensic staff in this case. Lawyers for Hansen had already accused lab personnel of testing key evidence without allowing a defense expert to observe, an allegation aired in prior motions and reported by Shaw Local.
With the new ruling, prosecutors may have to rethink how much forensic evidence they can safely present at trial and whether to seek appellate review before a jury is ever seated. For now, the Will County State’s Attorney’s Office says it is studying the judge’s order while both sides gear up for more pretrial battles.
"This ruling will have a devastating effect on the State’s already tenuous prosecution of my client," defense attorney Anna Rose Bertani said, according to local reporting. No trial date has been set, and court filings suggest the case is likely to see more legal wrangling over the contested DNA work before jurors hear any of it in a courtroom.
