BACKGROUND :"A man freed from prison last year after serving nearly 60 years in the slaying of one of three suburban Chicago women found bludgeoned to death in a state park has won court approval for DNA testing of evidence found at the crime scene. Chester Weger, 82, has maintained that he didn't kill anyone and that testing the evidence could prove that he is innocent of the 1960 killings at northern Illinois' Starved Rock State Park. LaSalle County Judge Michael Jansz ruled Tuesday that cigarette butts, hair and string found at the crime scene can be tested, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. Weger's attorney, Andrew Hale, said DNA testing on hairs found on the victims could rule out his client as the killer. If that were to happen, Weger could seek to have his conviction vacated. LaSalle County prosecutors have opposed the testing, saying it’s a “fishing expedition” and that the evidence wasn’t stored properly over the years. Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow, who was appointed special prosecutor in the case, also had opposed the request. Weger was 21 at the time of the killings and employed as a dishwasher at a lodge where the three women were staying. He initially confessed to killing all three and reenacted their slayings. He later recanted his confession, claiming innocence and saying prosecutors coerced him to confess to a crime he didn’t commit. Weger was convicted of killing Oetting, but prosecutors chose not to try him for the deaths of Mildred Lindquist, 50, and Frances Murphy, 47, after he was sentenced to life in prison in 1961. The three friends had been hiking at the popular park 100 miles (161 kilometers) southwest of Chicago while on vacation when they were slain in March 1960. Each had been bludgeoned more than 100 times. Weger was released from prison in February 2020, three months after the Illinois Prisoner Review Board granted him parole on his 24th try, saying he’d been a model prisoner. But the courts haven’t deemed him to be innocent of the killings. Weger's legal team includes Microtrace, an Elgin forensics lab whose work has helped identify serial killers in Seattle and Atlanta." (Associated Press: Published by US News, on October 28, 2021.)
-------------------------------------------------------
STORY: "Starved Rock murders moved to April 18," by Reporter Tom Collins, published by Shaw Local on February 6, 2022.
SUB-HEADING: "Weger attorney confirms lab isn't finished with analysis."
GIST: "A private lab isn’t finished yet analyzing evidence from the Starved Rock murders case, so a Tuesday hearing for parolee Chester Weger has been moved to April 18.
Weger attorney Andy Hale confirmed Saturday the lab analysis still is pending so attorneys agreed to continue the scheduled Feb. 8 hearing an additional 10 weeks.
“The testing should be completed shortly before then, hopefully,” Hale said.
Weger, who turns 83 next month, maintains he is innocent of bludgeoning death three women in 1960 at Starved Rock State Park. He succeeded late last year in persuading a judge to send pieces of evidence to a private lab for tests not available when he stood trial.
The exhibits in question include cigarette butts, hairs and pieces of string collected at various spots at the crime scene.
Weger was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison but then paroled in 2019. He and his lawyers have spent most of the past three years trying to get exhibits reanalyzed in hopes of reversing his guilty verdict."
The entire story can be read at:
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;
