"Curtis
Lovelace said he stepped out from his law office on Aug. 27, 2014, to
run to the bank and grab lunch to take to his wife, Christine. Outside, he said he saw Quincy Police Department Detective Adam Gibson standing by his car and went to shake the officer's hand. Instead, Gibson told Lovelace to put his hands on the car and then placed him under arrest. Lovelace shared his story Thursday
afternoon when he took the stand to defend himself during his
first-degree murder trial at the Sangamon County Courthouse. Lovelace said he wasn't told until he was at
the Quincy Police Department that he had been indicted in connection
with the February 2006 death of his first wife, Cory, and read his
Miranda rights. He said that he told police multiple times that he had
nothing to do with his first wife's death, hoping they would listen to
his version of events and discontinue the case. Instead, it has become one of the most-followed cases in Adams County history. “It's been two and a half years,” Lovelace said, breaking down in tears. He reiterated several times that he had
nothing to do with Cory Lovelace's death, saying he believed excessive
drinking — a trait he admittedly shared — led to her death at age 38. But, he said, it's up to the jury to decide......... Lovelace also testified about the morning he
reported his wife's death, which he said he believes was accelerated by
her alcoholism. The courtroom was hushed as he told his version of the
events of Feb. 14, 2006, for the first time in public. Lovelace said he believed Cory had the flu the weekend before her death. “I remember her spending most of her time in bed that weekend,” he said. He also testified that Cory Lovelace “was absolutely alive that morning.” When he saw Cory in bed later that morning,
Lovelace said he knew she was dead. He said her eyes were open, and she
was very pale. “I think I shook her,” he said. “I think I yelled at her. I remember thinking, 'I can't believe this is happening.' ” While he didn't remember the exact positioning
of Cory Lovelace's hands, which photographs showed were suspended above
her chest, he did agree that the positioning was “unusual." Cory was cremated after her funeral service.
Lovelace said he and Didriksen talked about the arrangements and agreed
she would be cremated. Didriksen testified last week, however, that she
was not consulted about the cremation. He said he accepted what then-Adams County
Coroner Gary Hamilton told him, which Lovelace said was that Cory
Lovelace had died from liver damage. He said there was never a
discussion about a follow-up autopsy. “I was concerned with how she died, but I didn't have an answer how she died,” Curtis Lovelace said.
Friday, March 10, 2017
Curtis Lovelace: Illinois; (Part 2): On-going trial: Bulletin; Former member of the state attorney's office takes the stand and shares the story of the day his wife died. Reporter Matt Hopf; The Herald-Whig; March 9, 2017.
