Trial begins for man accused of killing Bradley police Sgt. Marlene Rittmanic

KANKAKEE, Ill. — Jurors on Wednesday heard in vivid detail how a police sergeant was gunned down four days after Christmas three years ago as the defense painted the accused shooter as a man defending his girlfriend and three children.

Darius Sullivan entered the courtroom in a dark suit and restrained with shackles ahead of opening statements in his trial. Prosecutors say Sullivan killed Sgt. Marlene Rittmanic , a 21-year veteran with the Bradley Police Department, on December 29, 2021 as she and her partner, Officer Tyler Bailey, responded to a Comfort Inn hotel about a complaint about a barking dogs inside a vehicle in the parking lot.

The vehicle was traced to Sullivan’s girlfriend, Xandria Harris, while the hotel room was in Sullivan’s name, authorities said. The prosecutors said Rittmanic and Bailey went to the room to issue citations for the dogs and to take Sullivan into custody on outstanding warrants.

Body camera footage reportedly shows the officers knocking on the door five times before Harris opened the door.

“That’s when this defendant comes around the corner with a Glock and puts that gun at Officer Bailey’s head,” Kankakee County State’s Attorney Jim Rowe said.

As Rittmanic ran for cover, it’s alleged that Sullivan chased her and shot her in the shoulder. He tried to shoot a second time but the gun jammed, the prosecutor said. A scuffle then allegedly ensued as the pair wrestled over Rittmanic’s service weapon.

“‘Let go of the gun. Let go of the gun or I’m going to kill you.’ Those are the last words Marlene Rittmanic heard before this defendant pointed a gun, shot her twice in the throat leaving her dead on the floor of the hallway,” Rowe said.

Sullivan then, according to the state, fled to Indiana where he was later taken into custody.

His defense team painted a different picture of the chain of events, saying he was defending his girlfriend and children who were in the hotel room.

“He was protecting his family from people pushing their way into the room, plain and simple,” Kankakee County Chief Public Defender Ed Pentuic told jurors.

Both Sullivan and his girlfriend, Harris, are charged with first degree murder and attempted murder. Sullivan is also charged with endangering the life of his three children.

Sullivan’s trial is expected to take two weeks. Harris will be tried separately.

The trial will continue Thursday at 10 a.m.

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