Last year on this
day (October 27, 2011), Kelli
O'Laughlin, a 14 year-old freshman at Lyons Township High School was murdered.
She was stabbed to death in an apparent burglary. This is believed to be the
first murder in Indian Head Park history. In loving memory of her, I will post
an article from The Daily Mail and ABC News before giving my condolences to her and her
family.
Burglar who stabbed
14-year-old Kelli to death in her home sent taunting text messages to her
mother after the murder
- Kelli O'Laughlin found dead by her mother in $500,000 Chicago house
- John L. Wilson Jr, charged with her murder, is in court today
- Local officer stopped suspect on night of murder but did not arrest him
- Kelli's funeral in Western Springs, Chicago, to take place this morning
- There had been a spate of burglaries on expensive houses in the area
By Laurie Whitwell
UPDATED: 19:38 GMT, 4 November 2011
UPDATED: 19:38 GMT, 4 November 2011
The man
charged with stabbing 14-year-old Kelli O'Laughlin to death when she
interrupted a burglary in her suburban home sent taunting text messages to her
mother from the girl's stolen cell phone, it has emerged.
John L.
Wilson Junior was today in court charged with first-degree murder and
residential burglary. He was denied bail by a judge.
Kelli's
funeral took place just a few miles away at St. John of the Cross Church in
Western Springs, Chicago at around the same time, with mourners lining the road
as her coffin passed by.
It was
also revealed today that a local police officer stopped Wilson Jr, who was out
on parole for armed robbery when the killing took place, on the night of the
murder but had no cause to arrest him.
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Murder:
John L Wilson Junior, 38, right, is in court today charged with the
first-degree murder of 14-year-old Kelli O'Laughlin, left, in her suburban
Chicago home
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Leafy: Wilson Jr allegedly sent taunting text messages to Kelli's mother
from the girl's cell phone after the killing at their $500,000 house, pictured
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Homicide:
Kelli O'Laughlin,was remembered by school friends as a happy, fun girl who
always wore a smile
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The 38-year-old, whose last known address is on
South Lafayette Avenue in Chicago, was taken into custody on Wednesday
afternoon, six days after the killing at the O'Laughlin's $500,000 family home
in Indian Head Park.
Today Judge Peter A. Felice ordered Wilson Jr, who
has spent 17 years of the last two decades behind bars, be held without bond
during an appearance at the Cook County courthouse in Bridgeview.
Wilson Jr was dressed in a grey sweatshirt that
covered his arm tattoos and said nothing during the hearing, in front of a
packed courthouse, the Chicago Sun Times reported.
Those in attendance were told how last Thursday
Wilson Jr entered the O'Laughlin's leafy neighbourhood and broke a dining room
window of their $500,000 home with a rock wrapped in a red knit cap.
When popular Lyons Township High School freshman
Kelli arrived home around 3.40pm, 'she was confronted by John Wilson,' Cook
County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez said at a news conference.
Wilson Jr grabbed an eight inch carving knife from
a butcher's block and stabbed Kelli in the neck, back and chest, before
dragging her dead body from the family room into the kitchen, Ms Alvarez said,
accordingh to the Chicago Tribune.
He then ransacked the home and fled with a bowl of
coins, an iPod Touch and Kelli's phone. The knife was found in large pool of
blood in the family.
She was discovered by her mother Brenda at around
5.30pm.
In the hours after the murder, Wilson Jr used the
phone to send 'taunting and disturbing' messages to Kelli's mother. 'There are
no words to describe how horrific it is,' Ms Alvarez said. She would not reveal
the exact nature of the taunts.
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Homicide:
High school freshman Kelli was stabbed to death after coming home from school
last Thursday to encounter a burglary. Detectives believe Wilson Jr is this
man, drawn in a police sketch
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Stabbing:
Miss O'Laughlin, pictured, was found by her mother Brenda in their home at
about 5.30pm on Thursday
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Sledging:
Brenda O'Laughlin's Facebook page has this profile picture. She found her
daughter dead
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Assistant State’s Attorney Peter Troy said the
messages to Kelli's mother Brenda came within hours of her daughter's murder.
He said: 'A horrific crime was committed here, and
then to have the mother of the victim subject to taunts by the person who did
it ... I can’t describe it.'
'To me that doesn't sound like a random burglary,'
Marie Raleigh told Fox News Chicago. ' I'm a little bit concerned that someone
could be so vicious and cruel as to do that to the family of this victim. Kelli
didn't deserve that and neither did her family.'
'The United States Secret Service was able to track
the defendant’s cellphone and Kelli’s cellphone,' Mr Troy said, according to
the Chicago Tribune.
'The agents learned these two phones travelled in
tandem with one another throughout the city of Chicago.'
Wilson Jr was located Wednesday on the South Side.
When found, he had his phone but not Kelli's, the Chicago Tribune reported.
DNA recovered from the knit cap matched Wilson Jr,
Alvarez said. Three witnesses identified Wilson in a line-up, she said.
Wilson Jr has an extensive history of criminal
violence, including a combined nine years spent in prison for carjacking in
1993 and aggravated battery in 2001.
His most recently received an 11-year sentence for
robbert. He was taken into custody in August 2002 and paroled on November 16,
2010, the Chicago Tribune reported.
It has been revealed that at around 8pm on the
night of the killing, a Willow Springs police officer responding to another
disturbance near the O'Laughlin home stopped Wilson Jr.
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Tributes:
More than 1,000 people have contributed to Facebook groups, with one suggesting
students at her school wear black on Monday in remembrance
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Kelli's
funeral will take place in Western Springs, Chicago this morning
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Plans:
Kelli had spoken of growing up in that day's Spanish class, friends said
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Suburban
home: Kelli was discovered by her mother in the 6300 block of Keokuk Road,
Indian head Park, a suburb of Chicago
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He said he was walking in the area because his car
had broken down and he needed a cab, leaving the officer no cause to arrest
him.
That officer was then off work for several days,
Fox News Chicago reported, and only saw the composite sketch of the suspect
when he returned to service recently.
He reportedly identified Wilson Jr as the man in
the drawing, which depicts a black man, 5'8" to 5'9" inches tall,
with a medium build. He was was seen in the area at the time wearing a dark,
hooded sweatshirt and had a backpack.
Police then traced the driver of the cab the
suspect got into after being stopped by the officer at a 7-11 in Willow
Springs, for miles from the murder scene.
Investigators arranged for a line-up, in which
Wilson Jr was positively identified, Fox News Chicago reported.
The unsuspecting taxi-driver took the suspect to
Midway airport where the man paid for his fare with coins. These were not the
special gold coins taken from the victim's home however.
Authorities spoke positively about the
investigation in a press conference on Thursday night. Sheriff Tom Dart said
the case had been presented to the state's attorney's office.
'We feel very confident about the case and the
individual in custody,' Sheriff Dart said. Indian Head Park Police Chief Frank
Alonzo said: 'I think we can rest a little bit easier tonight.'
Last week, another man was questioned in connection
with the murder. That man had been charged in September with another burglary
in the area but was later released, the Chicago Tribune reported.
He was not charged over Kelli's killing but the
original burglary charge was reinstated and he is now in Cook County Jail, the
Chicago Tribue reported.
The murder shook Indian Head Park, a leafy
community of roughly 3,800, and numerous online tribute groups attracting
thousands have been set up. A memorial fund has also been started.
Kelli's father, John O'Laughlin, said on Wednesday
that family members have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support they
have received.
ABC7 Exclusive: Family of
Kelli O'Laughlin, 14, talks for the first time -- 1 year after her murder
Wednesday,
October 10, 2012
It
began as a burglary and ended with a 14-year-old girl murdered in her own home.
Her
name was Kelli O'Laughlin, and her murder one year ago this month was the first
in the history of the small suburb of Indian Head Park.
Kelli's
parents have never spoken publicly until now. John and Brenda O'Laughlin don't
shy away from talking about their daughter. They view it as one more to way to
help them heal.
They
continue to hear from Kelli's huge network of friends, and even attended her
school's big homecoming football game this past weekend. They're not waiting
for a court verdict to provide them with comfort - they are seeking it out
themselves.
The
ribbons may have faded, but not the memories or the pain.
"We
have thousands of pictures of Kelli in all these different situations, but the
sad part is: There's no new pictures. There's no new stories," said John
O'Laughlin.
Last
fall in the O'Laughlin home was like so many others across the city and
suburbs. There were memories of summer vacations; a return to school and sports;
and, a big homecoming dance: Kelli O'Laughlin's first as a freshman at Lyons
Township High School.
Then,
on October 27th: a coincidence of time and crime. It was the one week between
tennis and track for Kelli, so she was home from school earlier than usual when
a burglar broke in.
"If
you knew Kelli, Kelli weighed 90 pounds and she wouldn't even hurt a fly,"
said Brenda O'Laughlin. "If this person would hurt Kelli, this person
would hurt anybody."
John
Wilson, Jr., a career criminal who had spent 17 of the last 20 years behind
bars, is charged with the murder. In the days that followed, police sources say
he sent taunting texts from Kelli's phone to her parents.
How
and why did a man from the South Side of Chicago allegedly pick the suburban
home, 25 miles from his last known address, to rob? It's a question still
unanswered.
"Whatever
happens, Kelli will never be back and our lives have changed forever. The
community has changed forever, and so, it doesn't matter: Why? What? When?
Where? Who? Or anything like that - it's just everything has been
changed," said Brenda O'Laughlin.
"You
have to find a way to be OK, or come to a realization that no matter what
happens in the court system, you are where you are. Your daughter is gone, and
that's a tough one to come to, because - you know, she's not coming back,"
said John O'Laughlin.
The
O'Laughlins have drawn strength from their community; so much so: despite the
horror that happened in this home, they have stayed here, in part, to stand
their ground.
"I've
tried to visualize going somewhere and no one would know our story. It's sort
of hard to start the conversation about what happened, and how traumatic it
was. I just don't want to do that," said John O'Laughlin.
"We
can't run from something that's happened because then it's like we are the
victims," said Brenda O'Laughlin. "We can't be known as the victim -
that we had to pick up and leave and stuff. This is our home."
Wednesday
on ABC7 News at 5, our conversation with the O'Laughlins continues. Kelli's
friends continue to honor her in ways big and small. Despite her death, Kelli
continues to impact the lives of those who knew her, as well as those who
didn't.
ABC7 Exclusive: Kelli O'Laughlin's family spreads joy in her honor
Wednesday,
October 10, 2012
The
album is full of beautiful photos, and it seems Kelli never took a bad picture.
Nor did she ever know a stranger, according to her family. She considered
people she didn't know to be friends she had yet to meet.
"I
asked Kelli at one point: 'So who's your best friend?' She said 'I have no best
friend, everybody is my friend.' And it was true," Brenda said.
Brenda
and her husband, John, could have curled up in a ball and locked the world out
when their daughter was murdered. But instead they opened their arms and their
hearts.
"We
really did not know how many friends she had. What is really nice now is all
these friends are reaching out to us. They haven't closed us out and we haven't
closed them out," Brenda said.
"That's
maybe the best way for me to describe grief: It's a dark cloud. It didn't lift
the cloud for me so much as there were other people in it with us," John
O'Laughlin, Kelli's father, said.
The
O'Laughlins have tried to harness all of the good will and use it to do some
good for others. There are have been tennis tournaments and flower sales. A fun
run, "Run for Kelli," is planned for next month. Money
raised will send children to O'Laughlin's favorite summer camp, pay for college
scholarships, and buy uniforms for the local tennis team.
"Our
goal is to help out other children just like Kelli always wanted to do."
The
pain of Kelli's loss - as surprising as it was senseless - is still a constant.
She walked in a robbery, police said, and was killed. The suspect is a career
criminal, John Wilson, Jr., who was on parole.
"It's
still hard. It's probably going to be hard for the rest of our lives,"
Brenda said. "Are the edges less sharp? I don't know. Not yet. It's still
very hard."
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