The St. Charles police officers involved in the fatal shooting of a man accused of wielding a chainsaw and threatening residents at an assisted living facility will not face criminal charges, according to a joint press release from the Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office, Illinois State Police and the St. Charles Police Department.
The Illinois State Police investigated the Dec. 1, 2024, shooting death of Daniel Escalera, 41, Tuesday’s news release said. Officials looked at body-worn camera audio and video, statements from witnesses, physical evidence from the scene and autopsy results, according to the release.
The findings were presented to the Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office, which found no wrongdoing on the part of the officers and closed the review, according to the release.
On Dec. 1, 2024, police responded to River Glen of St. Charles at 975 N. Fifth Ave., an assisted living facility in St. Charles, according to past reporting. Escalera had been seen by witnesses trying to cut down a tree with a chainsaw and had entered the facility’s lobby and reportedly confronted residents, officials said.
The Illinois State Police found that an officer, upon finding Escalera at the doorway to the cafeteria near multiple residents, had shown Escalera his Taser and warned him to drop the chainsaw, Tuesday’s release said. Escalera entered the cafeteria and started the chainsaw, according to the release. The officer deployed his Taser, striking Escalera in the chest, officials said.
Escalera was briefly knocked down, but then got up and ran toward the officer with the chainsaw, according to the release.
At that point, a second St. Charles police officer joined, and a third officer followed Escalera to the facility’s cafeteria and back into the building’s lobby, according to the release from the state’s attorney’s office. Escalera charged toward the officer, who fired two shots that missed him, and Escalera collided with the officer and dropped the chainsaw, according to the release.
The officer then shot Escalera in the left forearm as he fled, officials said. Escalera stopped near an elderly resident in a wheelchair and held his hands in a position that appeared to imitate holding a gun, according to the release, and the officer shot Escalera in the chest.
The officers then provided medical treatment to Escalera, the release said. After paramedics arrived, Escalera was taken to Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital in Geneva, where he was pronounced dead shortly after. The coroner’s office later attributed the cause of death to gunshot wounds, but toxicology reports found amphetamines, methamphetamines and olanzapine in Escalera’s system, according to Tuesday’s release.
The Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office ultimately determined that deadly force was necessary to prevent death or great bodily harm to the officers or other individuals present, and therefore will not pursue criminal charges against the officers, according to the release.
The video of the shooting is available to the public at https://ispvideos.illinois.gov/media/videos/ois_st_charles_12-01-24-mp4.html. The Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office authorized the release of the video, according to the news release, and the Illinois State Police allowed Escalera’s family to review it before it was made public.
