Darien Officer Threatened After Traffic Stop, Prosecutor Says

A Downers Grove man is jailed after prosecutors say he told a Darien police officer he would shoot him, an accusation that came after a breath test following a traffic stop. Ron McClain, 47, faces a charge of threatening a public official, along with DUI, driving with a revoked license and obstructing an officer, according to the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office.

Prosecutors say a Darien officer stopped McClain around 7:30 p.m. Saturday after observing him driving without a seat belt, changing speed without an apparent reason and swerving inside his lane. The officer reported that McClain's eyes were bloodshot and glassy and that he smelled of alcohol. An on-site breath test returned a result of .23, prosecutors said, and McClain was taken into custody.

At the police station, prosecutors say McClain addressed the officer this way: "I wish I catch you out on the street. I'm going to shoot you." On Sunday, a judge revoked McClain's pretrial release in a 2023 Westmont case and ordered him held while the new case proceeds. His next court date is Nov. 4.

The Westmont case stems from a DUI arrest on Nov. 16, 2023. Prosecutors say a Westmont officer was handing McClain paperwork at the police station when McClain slapped the papers from the officer's hand, then said, "When I see you, boom! Your head gone b," and "I'm going to get my gun."

McClain had been on pretrial release in that matter. DuPage County State's Attorney Bob Berlin said the allegation of a second threat against an officer after a DUI arrest is "extremely serious," and added that the county "will not tolerate threats directed toward public officials."

The charges and the account of the traffic stop come from the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office. McClain is scheduled to appear in court Nov. 4.