ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL: MADISON COUNTY JUDGE FINDS CONVICTED SEX OFFENDER SEXUALLY VIOLENT

ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL: MADISON COUNTY JUDGE FINDS CONVICTED SEX OFFENDER SEXUALLY VIOLENT

April 08, 2026

Chicago - Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced a Madison County judge found a registered sex offender is a Sexually Violent Person (SVP). The case was prosecuted by the Attorney General's office.

Madison County Circuit Court Judge Amy Maher ordered Louis Arnold, 49, to be remanded to the custody of the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS). Arnold had been detained in the IDHS Treatment and Detention Facility awaiting his trial.

"The history of this offender clearly shows that his release into the community would pose a dangerous threat to the safety of women," Raoul said. "I am committed to protecting Illinois families and communities from offenders who have been deemed sexually violent by the court."

According to Raoul's office, Arnold was convicted in Madison County in 2005 of criminal sexual assault for luring and raping a woman in an alley while threatening her life with a knife. He was sentenced to eight years in prison. During his treatment, Arnold confessed to assaulting approximately 25 other victims, with at least one victim as young as 12.

Under the Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act, Raoul's office files cases seeking to commit offenders to the custody of IDHS. To be committed under the act, a person must have been convicted of a sexually violent offense and suffer from a mental disorder. The Attorney General's office must also prove that the offender is substantially probable to commit future acts of sexual violence if released from custody. Once committed to IDHS, offenders are reevaluated on a regular basis to determine if they continue to meet the criteria for commitment as a sexually violent person.

Deputy Bureau Chiefs Megan Lintker and William Bryant handled the case for Raoul's Sexually Violent Persons Bureau.