Wednesday, February 6, 2013
One hearing after his pro se motion was granted, John L. Wilson received 2,600 pages of discovery documents Wednesday. His request to have his hands freed from cuffs during future proceedings will be considered in March.
The man charged with the 2011 murder of 14-year-old Lyons Township student Kelli O’Laughlin was back in court Wednesday morning, and during the first hearing since a granted pro se motion allowed John L. Wilson to represent himself, signed for thousands of pages worth of documents a defendant's lawyer would typically hold. Wilson, dressed in a yellow and green jumpsuit and surrounded by several armed guards, signed with cuffed hands four receipts acknowledging the state's turnover of about 2,600 pages of discovery documents to the defendant. The pages will be transported by law enforcement officers to the Pontiac, IL, prison housing Wilson. Wilson asked presiding judge John Hynes if the documents could be mailed to him personally in the …
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
John L. Wilson, who is charged with the 2011 child murder in Indian Head Park, has been granted a motion of pro se with only stand-by counsel.
The man accused in the October 2011 murder of 14-year-old Kelli O’Laughlin in her Indian Head Park home has been granted the right to serve as his own lawyer as the case proceeds toward a likely trial. John L. Wilson was granted a pro se motion on Dec. 19 by presiding judge John Hynes. A public defender has been appointed as stand-by counsel. Defendants have the right to represent themselves even against their own self-interest, said Pat Reardon, first assistant public defender for Cook County, and no one can stop them from exercising that right. But lawyers tend to think it’s a bad call. “Frankly, from the view of the public defender, it’s a nightmare,” Reardon said. “There’s an old saying that a person who has himself for a lawyer has a …
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
John L. Wilson, Jr., is scheduled to appear in court again next month.
John L. Wilson, Jr., the man charged with the brutal murder of 14-year-old Lyons Township freshman Kelli O'Laughlin, is scheduled to appear in court next month for a status hearing. The case against the Chicago man, who had been out on parole at the time he burglarized the teen's Indian Head Park home, has progressed slowly. Wilson was taken into custody on November 2, 2011, six days after prosecutors say he stabbed the teen to death. He was charged with first-degree murder. READ: Suspect Charged With O'Laughlin Murder Has Long Criminal History Wilson was presented with a 31-count felony indictment that included charges of first-degree murder, residential burglary, armed robbery, aggravated unlawful restraint and home invasion on …
Friday, October 26, 2012
Patch takes a look at the efforts over the past year, inspired by the 14-year-old Lyons Township freshman, who was murdered in her Indian Head Park home.
It has been nearly a year since 14-year-old Kelli O'Laughlin was murdered in her Indian Head Park home. Police say the Lyons Township freshman walked in as her house was being burglarized on October 27, 2011 and was stabbed to death. The horrific crime motivated not only friends and family—but also strangers—to volunteer their time at events that would honor her memory. In the year since her death, numerous organizations have held fundraisers and charity projects to raise money for the Kelli Joy O'Laughlin Memorial Fund, which provides scholarships and educational opportunities for young people. As the O'Laughlin family prepares for a memorial service on the anniversary of her death, Patch takes a look at the events that have taken place …
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
The man accused of murdering 14-year-old Lyons Township freshman Kelli O'Laughlin appeared in court Wednesday morning.
The man charged in connection with the murder of a 14-year-old Lyons Township freshman from Indian Head Park made a brief appearance in court today. Police say John L. Wilson stabbed Kelli O'Laughlin to death after she came home from school and interrupted him while he was burglarizing the house. The case is still in the discovery phase, while Wilson's new attorney awaits for documents to be delivered from the state. Wilson only met his new attorney, public defender David McMahon last month. In May, Wilson dismissed his first defense team, Naperville-based John Carroll and Chicago-based Michelle Gonzalez, which was defending him pro bono. Wilson has been found mentally fit to stand trial for the 31 felony counts against him, including …
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
The public defender assigned to represent the man accused of murdering 14-year-old Lyons Township teen Kelli O'Laughlin said that having his client nearly 100 miles away could pose a problem.
The public defender assigned to represent John L. Wilson, the man charged with stabbing 14-year-old Lyons Township teen Kelli O'Laughlin to death in her own home, met his client today for the first time. On May 15, Wilson dismissed his attorneys, Naperville-based John Paul Carroll and co-counsel Michelle Gonzalez, and asked to represent himself. It was a move that surprised even Carroll. "It's insane for a person not to have an attorney," Carroll told Patch after the May 15 hearing. "That's like asking me to rebuild my own car engine." The judge asked Wilson at the time if he wanted some time to think about his decision. "I think you need to think hard and fast. These are serious matters. I believe there is forensic evidence in this case. …
Monday, May 14, 2012
John L. Wilson has been indicted on 31 felony charges and faces life in prison for the first-degree murder of 14-year-old Lyons Township freshman Kelli O'Laughlin.
The man charged with the murder of an Indian Head Park teen is requesting to represent himself at trial. The attorney who had been representing him, Naperville-based John Paul Carroll is facing *disciplinary action and a possible 90-day suspension for two unrelated cases. John L. Wilson is charged with murdering 14-year-old Kelli O'Laughlin, a freshman at Lyons Township High School, after she came home from school and walked in on him burglarizing her house last October. Carroll had agreed to continue to represent Wilson through any disciplinary proceedings, because the potential disciplinary action did not disqualify him from doing so. Judge John Joseph Hynes asked Wilson today if he wanted to continue to be represented by Carroll and co-…
Monday, April 23, 2012
Although John L. Wilson has twice proven impossible to examine, he did show new signs of comprehension in court on Monday.
The man accused of the October 2011 murder of 14-year-old Indian Head Park resident Kelli O’Laughlin has twice failed to cooperate with a mental-health examination by Cook County Forensic Clinical Services, prosecutors said in Cook County 5th District court on Monday. Attempts were made to examine John L. Wilson on April 17 and 20, both unsuccessful. Exam administers asked for an extension to try again, which Associate Judge John J. Hynes has granted. Hynes once again remanded Wilson to the Cook County Department of Corrections for a third exam later this week and issued a warning that future lack of cooperation would automatically invalidate any type of insanity defense. In contrast to his last court appearance, Wilson generally …
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
A judge has ordered John L. Wilson to submit to a mental-health examination and has issued a protective order to restrict the release of information outside the courtroom.
John L. Wilson, the man accused of the October 2011 murder of Lyons Township freshman Kelli O’Laughlin repeatedly answered “no” when asked if he understood various facts relating to his case Tuesday, prompting a judge to order him to undergo a mental health evaluation. Associate Judge John J. Hynes asked Wilson if he understood that his attorney, Naperville-based John P. Carroll, is currently appealing a suspension from the Attorney Registration & Disciplinary Commission of the Supreme Court of Illinois (a status which does not prohibit him from representing Wilson.) Nearly a dozen times, Wilson responded “no” when asked if he understood this and other statements, both nodding and shaking his head while answering. “What don’t you …
41.705447
-87.808314
10220 S 76th Ave # 141, Bridgeview, IL
/articles/accused-o-laughlin-killer-i-don-t-understand-why-i-m-in-court
/locations/6533362
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
The man charged with the murder of 14-year-old Kelli O'Laughlin has entered a plea of not guilty.
- POLICE & FIRE
- Sabrina Wu
-
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
John L. Wilson, Jr., the man charged with the murder of a Lyons Township teen, has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. At his arraignment Wednesday morning, Wilson's attorney made a third petition to have Wilson remanded to the custody of the Cook County Sheriff's Office. Wilson is currently being held at the Pontiac Correctional Facility, located about 100 miles south of Chicago on I-55. His attorney, Naperville-based John Paul Carroll, said the distance to the correctional facility and the procedures that must be followed, make it difficult for him to talk to his client. "It is very difficult for me to mount a defense in this case," Carroll said in court Wednesday. "I have never experienced representing a person charged with …
Deb
8:51 am on Thursday, February 7, 2013
Keep those cuffs on this career criminal! As always, my thoughts and prayers are with Kelli's parents. May their strength and fortitude carry them through this difficult time. more ›