LaSalle County Judge Michael C. Jansz denied allowing a new special prosecutor to take over for the Will County State’s Attorney’s Office in the Starved Rock Murder case. 84-year old Chester Weger’s Attorney Andy Hale says for the last two years, there has been a lack of interest by Will County Prosecutors to interview witnesses or look at any evidence in the case. He also asked for an evidentiary hearing because he said that Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow told him that the evidence is a complete disaster and would enflame people’s passions while hurting local authority. Hale has gotten hairs collected on one of the victim’s gloves tested and found a hair that wasn’t Chester Weger’s, which he says clears his clients name.
Will County Prosecutor Colleen Griffin says Hale didn’t show any conflict of interest but rather just attacked Glasgow for doing his job. She also said anything that Hale says happened has no evidence behind it. She also talked about other things brough foward by Hale which includes doning a signature analysis test. Hale claimed that Weger’s signiture on the murder confession sheet wasn’t done by him. Griffin says other courts ruled that his confession wasn’t courced like Weger now claims and it’s his signature on the confession sheet.
Hale reiterated that what Griffin said to him it proves that there is a lack of interest in the case and prosectuors want to just look at the trial from the 1960’s. Judge Jansz later ruled that Will County State’s Attorney’s Office can stay and that there will be no evidentiary hearing. Weger’s will be back in court next month.