McCullom Lake cop charged for driving on revoked license

Police in the small McHenry County village of McCullom Lake nabbed one of their own this week, charging a recently hired officer with 60 counts of driving on a revoked license, claiming he operated patrol vehicles for several months despite having his license pulled, apparently over a drunken driving offense in Wisconsin.

Officer James J. O'Doherty, 41, of Harvard, surrendered himself to his colleagues this week then was released after posting a $200 bond on the Class A misdemeanor charges that, if he is convicted, could land him up to a year in the county jail, probation or court supervision.

"We will be fighting these charges because they're not correct," O'Doherty said Friday.

McCullom Lake Police Chief Zachary Beatty did not return phone calls for comment on the arrest, but O'Doherty said he remains on the force and can go on patrol as long as he is riding as a passenger with another officer.

Village Prosecutor Richard Short confirmed the charges, but said he was unaware of the details at this point.

O'Doherty and his attorney, Jamie Wombacher, blamed the allegations on a personal dispute between he and fellow Officer Kelly Given. Given, who until recently served as the village's interim police chief, is the complaining officer on the charges.

"From what I understand, there's a personal vendetta between these two," Wombacher said. "I don't think they're going to be able to prove these allegations."

The charges claim that on 60 occasions between Feb. 6 and May 26, O'Doherty drove either a police squad car or the department's Ford Explorer while his license had been revoked.

Wombacher believes the revocation stems from O'Doherty's conviction on drunken driving charges in connection with a Feb. 26, 2009 arrest in Walworth County, Wis.

According to court records, O'Doherty became intoxicated that day at a Wisconsin strip club then crashed his car into a ditch while trying to drive home. A sheriff's deputy found him in the car with an open bottle of vodka and his loaded gun under the driver's seat. Two hours later, his blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal threshold, court documents state.

The arrest led to O'Doherty's resignation from the Woodstock Police department in April 2009. McCullom Lake hired him in December, village board minutes state.

O'Doherty is scheduled to appear in court on the charges July 26.