Winnebago County Deputy Chief Mark Karner dies at age 62

February 7, 2022|By Kevin Haas|In Rockford, Trending, Local

Winnebago County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Chief Mark Karner, a former prosecutor, has died at age 62. (Photo provided/Winnebago County Sheriff’s Department)

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ROCKFORD — One of the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Department’s highest ranking officials died over the weekend due to apparent natural causes, the department said Monday.

Deputy Chief Mark Karner, who began his career with the Sheriff’s Department in 2015, was 62. He served as deputy chief of strategic initiatives and oversaw the county’s records department, 911 Center, the Coroner’s Office and was the department’s Freedom of Information Act officer.

“We are devastated to hear of the passing of our colleague and friend,” Sheriff Gary Caruana said in a statement. “Mark brought a lot of good will to our command staff and I always enjoyed getting to work with him. Chief Karner will be missed, and we appreciate his years of service to law enforcement, the criminal justice system and residents of Winnebago County.”

Karner started his law enforcement career in 1989 as a prosecutor in the Winnebago County State’s Attorney’s Office. After serving 16 years as a violent crime prosecutor, he became a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois.

“The members of the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office offer their deepest condolences to the Karner family,” the department said in a news release. “Please keep his family and his county law enforcement family in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.”