Former Kane County Circuit Clerk Thomas Hartwell, indicted last month on charges of misusing public money and receiving kickbacks, was found dead Wednesday morning in an apparent suicide, officials said.
Hartwell, 63, was discovered at his Palatine law firm office, according to the Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Kane County Sheriff Ron Hain said deputies were called to Hartwell’s home in unincorporated Elgin about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday by a family member who said Hartwell had been missing for about 24 hours.
At the deputies’ request, Palatine police checked the Collins, Radja & Hartwell law office, 330 W. Colfax St., where they discovered Hartwell had taken his own life, Hain said.
An autopsy has not been conducted yet and the cause of death has not been released. Palatine police said the investigation is ongoing.
In late April, Hartwell was indicted on felony theft and official misconduct charges in connection with the alleged misuse of nearly $120,000 in public funds while in he was in office, court records show.
He also was charged with several counts of committing wire fraud, money laundering, misapplying funds as a government employee and income tax fraud, according to court records.
The charges came after a two-year investigation by Illinois State Police and the Illinois Department of Revenue, officials said.
Hartwell was released from jail on a signature bond, and was next due in court May 26.
Hartwell’s brother, Todd, posted on note on Facebook about his brother’s death, encouraging people to “send prayers to his fiancé Liz and his two boys, David and Dan.”
“Tom was a man who followed Jesus Christ,” Todd Hartwell wrote. “A man of towering intellect and logic. Passionate about the things that matter and a mentor to many.”
The criminal investigation into possible wrongdoing started in January 2021, when Kane County State’s Attorney Jamie Mosser said she notified state police about what appeared to be Hartwell’s misappropriation of county funds.
It’s alleged that between December 2018 and November 2020, Hartwell may have steered $119,575 in public money to two companies run by Robert Gutierrez, of St. Charles, prosecutors said. Gutierrez, who served as president of the companies, allegedly gave Hartwell $15,000 in kickbacks.
Hartwell was also accused of failing to report income on his 2018, 2019 and 2020 tax returns, officials said.
It is unclear how the criminal case will proceed with Hartwell’s death. Gutierrez was indicted in April for theft by deception of greater than $100,000 and providing kickbacks, officials said.
Hartwell served as the circuit court clerk from 2012 to 2020, when he lost a reelection bid to current Circuit Clerk Theresa Barreiro. He ran unsuccessfully to be a circuit court judge in 2017.
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Hartwell, a Republican, served as a Kane County Board member from 1996 to 2000 and was a former chairman of the Kane County Republican Party.
He was also a volunteer for numerous youth sports leagues and served as the former chairman of the board of the Elgin Recreation Center and Aurora Recreation Center. The youth programs were aimed at helping keep children from joining gangs.