Special Prosecutor Ready to Deal in Latest Drug Case For Judge's Druggie Kid

A special prosecutor appointed a judge's son's heroin case said he has extended an offer.

But whatever offer Charles Colburn made to the son of former Will County Chief Judge Rodney Lechwar, he will be hard-pressed to outdo the last deal he did for the convicted felon.

That time, in November 2012, Colburn asked Will County Judge Edward Burmila to recommend Lechwar's son to a special prison boot camp program that would allow him to walk free from prison in a matter of months.

The son, Matthew Lechwar, 31, was looking at doing 30 years in prison when Colburn put the word in for him. Instead, with Judge Burmila's recommendation, Matthew Lechwar got out of prison in less than seven months.

Nine days after his release, someone at the Channahon residence where he was living with his father called 911 and claimed Matthew Lechwar overdosed, said Channahon Police Chief Jeff Wold.

When officers arrived, Matthew Lechwar "woke up" and was able to walk around on his own, Wold said, but while the cops were there they found needles and baggies in the residence.

The Channahon police forwarded the matter to Colburn's office but the special prosecutor did not pursue charges.

The 2012 trip to prison was Matthew Lechwar's second. He was also locked up for a 2010 Cook County drug conviction.

Four years before that, Matthew Lechwar was charged in Will County with the unlawful delivery of heroin. He got the case dropped by successfully completing a special drug court program.

Matthew Lechwar also has a 2000 possession of cannabis conviction out of Kendall County, a 2003 driving under the influence conviction in Will County, and a 2004 possession of a controlled substance conviction from Grundy County, Colburn said during a court hearing.

The case that has Matthew Lechwar in jail now stems from a January arrest on the east side of Joliet. The cops allegedly caught him holding nine bags of heroin near the corner of Eastern Avenue and Osgood Street.

If convicted in this latest case, Matthew Lechwar faces up to three years in prison but could also get off with probation.

Mattew Lechwar's father, Rodney Lechwar, was a judge from 1985 until 2010 and held the position of chief judge in Will County from 1997 to 2003. For 10 years prior to becoming a judge, Rodney Lechwar was a Will County prosecutor.

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