On July 16, 1983, Auxiliary Sergeant Denis Patrick Foley Jr., 50, of the Will County Sheriff’s Office was mortally wounded in an ambush in rural Homer Township. At about 3:25 a.m. Foley and Auxiliary Deputy Steven Mayer responded to a disabled vehicle at 143rd Street and State Street. As the deputies exited their patrol car the driver of a pickup asked for a jump start and then opened fire. Deputy Mayer, 23, was killed at the scene; Foley was shot in the throat and radioed for help but his transmission was garbled.

A nearby farmer led officers to the scene where three occupants of the red car — George Kiehl, 24; Cathleen Norwood, 25; and Richard Paulin, 32 — were found dead. Laura Troutman, 21, survived after being shot six times. Foley underwent multiple surgeries but died of his wounds on August 17, 1983. He was survived by two sons and three daughters; his wife had died in 1982. Investigation later focused on Milton Johnson, 33, who was arrested in March 1984 and convicted of multiple murders from that summer; he was never tried for the July 16 ambush but is considered the primary suspect and a receipt found under Deputy Mayer’s body tied Johnson to the scene.

The case remains open; anyone with information about the ambush is asked to come forward.