Suspect Released In Edwardsville Stalking, Hate Crime Case

EDWARDSVILLE – An Illinois man charged by Edwardsville police with stalking and hate crime offenses has been ordered released from custody.

Richard E. Davis, 61, of Smithton, Ill., was charged on June 4, 2026 with the following offenses:

1. Hate crime (Class 3 felony)

2. Stalking (Class 4 felony)

3. Unlawful restraint (Class 4 felony)

4. Criminal defacement of property (Class 4 felony)

5. Unlawful use of an electronic tracking device (Class A misdemeanor)

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   Criminal trespass to vehicles (Class A misdemeanor)

Davis allegedly used an electronic GPS tracking device to monitor the movement of the victim’s motor vehicle without their knowledge or consent on at least two separate occasions from Feb. 6 to April 6, 2026.

According to the state’s petition to deny Davis’s pretrial release from custody, Davis allegedly trespassed into the victim’s vehicle on Feb. 6, 2026 and placed a LandAirSea GPS tracking device within the vehicle which was linked to an application on his phone. The victim only recently discovered and removed the tracking device.

Davis allegedly surveilled the victim’s whereabouts at least twice from February to April of 2026, and followed the victim “throughout various points in Madison County” on Feb. 24, 2026. On April 6, 2026, he reportedly deflated the tires on the victim’s vehicle while it was parked in Pontoon Beach, preventing the victim from leaving and resulting in the unlawful restraint charge.

On April 12, 2026, Davis is accused of monitoring the movements of the same victim’s vehicle a third time before vandalizing the vehicle while it was parked in Edwardsville. Charging documents state he spray painted a vulgar phrase on the victim’s vehicle which lead authorities to believe the act was committed “by reason of the actual or perceived gender” of the victim, resulting in the hate crime charge.

The Edwardsville Police Department presented the case. The Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office requested Davis be kept in custody pending trial to avoid the risk to not only the victim’s safety, but “the physical safety of all women in Madison County.”

No hearing was held on the state’s petition and Davis was ordered released from custody, as certain conditions of his release were agreed upon by the parties involved in the case.

Under the conditions of his release, Davis has been ordered to have no contact or communication with the victim in this case and not to enter or remain on the premises of the victim’s residence. He has also been ordered to comply with all conditions of an active Order of Protection sought by the victim.

All individuals charged are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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