MARK KIESLING: Dorian says this case not over until the final inning

I wrote last week about the questionable decision to dismiss Will County State's Attorney James Glasgow from a civil lawsuit brought by Lynwood police Officer Brian Dorian.

Questionable, I said, not because of the law behind it, but because if Glasgow — or someone in power in Will County — is not held responsible for almost destroying Dorian's life and career, then who is?

I tried unsuccessfully to reach Dorian last week after U.S. District Court Judge James Zagel tossed Glasgow from Dorian's lawsuit.

Then, unexpectedly, I ended up talking to Dorian during the Christmas holiday.

Dorian was, if you recall, arrested and held on suspicion that he had shot and killed one man in Beecher, wounded another there and then went across the state line into Lowell, where he was accused of shooting a farmer. Ultimately, he was cleared of the charges.

But his name and photo were splashed everywhere. What's more compelling reading than a cop turned psycho killer?

Except it turned out not to be him, and, well, the authorities in Will County had to let him go.

By most accounts, Glasgow (who is running for re-election) was the driving force behind getting a suspect in these high-profile shootings behind bars.

In a way, you can't blame him. No voter likes inaction or lethargy on the part of his or her elected officials, and that was due to translate into some negative ballot backlash.

Dorian, as it turns out, is not sweating this latest development.

"Look, we are in the fourth inning of a nine-inning ball game," he said, although he should know legal proceedings almost always go into extra innings. "We are not done with this yet.

"If you look at Judge Zagel's ruling, Glasgow was dismissed without prejudice, which means the charges can be reinstated if we find the evidence," Dorian added. "And I think people are going to be very surprised at what evidence we are going to present.

"For one thing, a state's attorney is a prosecutor, not a detective. And in this case, they were acting more like detectives than prosecutors."

That does not mean Dorian or his attorney are satisfied with the case the real detectives put together. Also named in the suit are Will County Sheriff Paul Kaupas and one of his detectives.

The man police now believe was the real shooter was Gary Amaya, who himself was killed when an intrepid customer at an Orland Park store grabbed Amaya's gun, then shot him to death as Amaya tried to tie up employees.

"Even then, with what I know now, I wasn't ready to believe Amaya was the killer until I saw some hard evidence," Dorian said.

Dorian said he was convinced when Amaya's gun matched the one used in the Beecher and Lowell shootings.

Does all this make Dorian a better cop, one not as likely to rush to judgment? He likes to think so.

And by his willingness to calmly use the legal system to get justice, it appears this is true.

The opinions are solely those of the writer. He can be reached at mark.kiesling@nwi.com or (219) 933-4170.