The Kane County circuit clerk’s employee accused of official misconduct and forgery has pleaded not guilty to the charges, court records show.
Kelli D. Brackett, 40, of Aurora, denied two counts each of theft of governmental property, official misconduct and forgery during a hearing before Kane County Judge Linda Abrahamson. Brackett remains free on bond with a court appearance scheduled for May 26.
According to prosecutors and the indictment, Brackett took an unspecified amount of money greater than $500 in an “attempt to gain a personal advantage for herself or another” by editing court records “to reflect incorrect payment amounts on criminal and traffic cases.”
Brackett was arrested in January, and a grand jury issued an indictment in February which references two traffic cases from 2015, one involving an Aurora man and a second involving a South Elgin man. Prosecutors allege Brackett created falsified payment receipts relating to those tickets.
Kane County Circuit Clerk Thomas Hartwell previously said Brackett had been placed on paid administrative leave and that the situation was an internal issue not impacting the public.
Dan Campana is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News