Legal Question in Constitutional Law in Illinois

Re: Detention and denying hospital visits without being charged

The police are waiting until your boyfriend is healthy before they talk to him. In the meantime, they are making sure no one helps him make up a story and/or that no one attacks him to keep him quiet. And the fact that he hasn't been charged *yet* doesn't mean that he won't be later.

You seem surprised that the police are being so vigillant, but the events you described sound like major crimes -- and plenty of them. A man was killed, another was seriously injured, and a third evidently was a large-scale drug distributor. Also, at least as far as the police can tell at the moment, there may have been a home invasion robbery. If you expect the police to be nonchalant about this then you are not being realistic.

The police are not violating your rights because only immediate family can claim a right to visit someone in the hospital. As for your boyfriend, if he is being held as a suspect or a material witness the police can restrict his visitation rights, at least temporarily.

Re: Detention and denying hospital visits without being charged

Your boyfriend is, in the best case, an innocent witness/victim to a murder and attempted murder. In the worst case, he could be charged if there is probable cause to believe he committed the above mentioned crimes or any other crime. The police are going to investigate and question your boyfriend. Your boyfriend may simply provide witness testimony or implicate himself. It is hard to predict. The safest thing to do is have an attorney represent your boyfriend's interests and if necessary advise him to assert his rights. Please feel free to call if you have any questions. We have offices in downtown Chicago and Lemont, Illinois.