Cooks has no felony convictions on his record, but court records show he was accused in 1994 of shooting a man in the arm and leg, robbing him of cash and jewelry, kidnapping him and demanding a ransom. He was charged with aggravated kidnapping, armed robbery and attempted murder and spent nearly two years in jail before Cook County prosecutors dropped the case on the day it was to go to trial, according to the records. There was no explanation in the records as to why the case was dismissed.