Champaign Police Officer Tests Positive For COVID-19

Champaign Police Cars

CHAMPAIGN – The city of Champaign announced late Thursday night that a police officer has tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

In a press release, the city said the officer is at home in isolation and does not need hospitalization. 

The city did not release any other information about the officer’s identity, citing privacy policies.

City employees who may have come into contact with the officer have been directed to self-quarantine.

On Thursday, the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District reported there are 46 cases of COVID-19 in the county. Sixteen people are in the hospital. Six patients have recovered. 

The announcement came less than 24 hours after a Chicago police officer died of COVID-19.  Officer Marco Di Franco, 50, is the first member of the Chicago force to die from the disease. He passed away at a Park Ridge hospital around 1:00 a.m. on Thursday.

In hard-hit New York City, CNBC reports more than 1,000 police officers have contracted COVID-19. A NYC detective lost his life last Sunday due to complications caused by the coronavirus.

Reginald Hardwick

Reginald Hardwick is the News & Public Affairs Director at Illinois Public Media. He oversees daily newscasts and online stories. He also manages The 21st Show, a live, weekday talk show that airs on six NPR stations throughout Illinois. He is the executive producer of IPM's annual environmental TV special "State of Change." And he is the co-creator of Illinois Soul, IPM's Black-focused audio service that launched in February 2024. Before arriving at IPM in 2019, he served as News Director at WKAR in East Lansing and spent 17 years as a TV news producer and manager at KXAS, the NBC-owned station in Dallas/Fort Worth. Reginald is the recipient of three Edward R. Murrow regional awards, seven regional Emmy awards, and multiple honors from the National Association of Black Journalists. Born in Vietnam, Reginald grew up in Colorado and is a graduate of the University of Northern Colorado. Email: rh14@illinois.edu Twitter: @RNewsIPM