Illinois man, who will be brought to trial for fatal mass shootings at the Parade on July 4, 3 years after the attack

Waukegan, sick (AP) – the Attempt Monday should begin by a suburban Chicago man who is accused of shooting on a parade on a parade on independence day 2022, in which seven people are killed and dozens of others are wounded.

Robert Crimo III is the first degree with 21 murder cases, three cases tried for every person killed and 48 murder cases. The prosecutors have made the less serious 48 heavy batteries Selection of the jury Last week.

The way to try was bumpy, which is partly due to crimo's unpredictability, including his, Rejection of a plea That even surprised his lawyers. When potential jurors were interviewed last week, he appeared sporadically in court and temporarily refused to leave his prison cell.

The authorities stated that crimo was sitting on a roof and fired in the crowds to have gathered the annual parade on July fourth in Downtown Highland Park, 30 miles (50 kilometers) north of Chicago.

The prosecutors submitted thousands of evidence as well as hours from a survey recorded on video, during which the police said that crimo was the shootout. But the 24-year-old has had since then not guilty.

His defenders rejected a comment before the trial, which is expected to take a month.

His father, Robert Crimo Jr., a former mayor candidate, was charged with the preservation of an weapon license. He was guilty in 2023 Seven offenses of ruthless behaviors And less served than two months in prison.

He took part in his son's hearing and sometimes made eye contact with him during the court. He refused to discuss the case in detail before the process.

“As a parent, I love my son very much,” he said. “And Bobby loves this country more than anyone else.”

The public prosecutor is planning to call several law enforcement officers and survivors of the shootout in order to testify. You will also show videos of crimos statements to the police. Some of the videos have already been shown in court as a public prosecutor tried unsuccessfully to let them throw out.

The unpredictable behavior of crimo has contributed to delays in the court.

He fired his public defenders and said he would represent himself, then abrupt turn around. In June 2024, when he was expected to accept and give a plea deal Victim And related to the chance to speak to him publicly, he came to the court in a wheelchair and rejected the deal.

The inhabitants of the wealthy Highland Park of around 30,000 at Lake Michigan mourned the losses. Some potential jurors were excused for their connections to the case.

The city guides canceled the usual parade in 2023 and decided on a “community walk”. The parade was set again last year on a different route and with a monument to the victims.

“Our community is once again reminded of the immense pain and the trauma caused by the Highland Park shooting,” said the mayor of Highland Park, Nancy Rotering, in a statement before the jury was selected. “Our hearts remain with the victims, their families and all those whose life has been changed forever through this devastating day.”

The victims killed Katherine Goldstein contained in the shootout, 64; Jacquelyn Sundheim, 63; Stephen Straus, 88; Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78; Eduardo Uvaldo, 69; and married couple Kevin McCarthy (37) and Irina McCarthy, 35.

Survivors and their families have submitted several Complainincluding against the creator of the Semi -automatic rifle Used at the shootout and against Authorities They accuse negligence.