Local men on death row or facing death penalty
By Matt Hanley
mhanley@stmedianetwork.com
Last Modified: Mar 10, 2011 06:22PM
Three men with local connections were on death row before Gov. Quinn’s Wednesday decision to abolish the death penalty.
Eric Hanson
Hanson, 34, of Naperville, was sentenced to death by a DuPage County jury after he was convicted of the 2005 quadruple murders of his parents, sister and brother-in-law in their homes in Naperville and Aurora. Quinn’s decision means Hanson is now sentenced to life in prison.
Ed Tenney
Tenney, 51, of Aurora, was sentenced to death in DuPage County in 2010, after he was convicted of the 1992 murder of Aurora resident Jerry Weber during a robbery that netted $6. Tenney was already serving life sentences for the 1993 murders of two Aurora Township women, Felton Road neighbors Virginia Johannessen and Jill Oberweis.
Tenney’s sentence for Weber’s death is now life in prison.
Brian Dugan
Dugan, 54, of Aurora, was sentenced to death in DuPage County in 2009, after he pleaded guilty to the rape and murder of 10-year-old Jeanine Nicarico, who was abducted from her Naperville home in 1983. Dugan is already serving two life sentences for the murders of 27-year-old nurse Donna Schnorr of Geneva and 7-year-old Melissa Ackermann of Somonauk. Dugan pleaded guilty to both those murders in the 1980s. He is now serving three life sentences.
Several other local men would be facing the death penalty if convicted of murder.
Theddias LeSure
LeSure, 23, of Montgomery, is charged with murder, attempted murder and aggravated arson. Prosecutors said LeSure poured gasoline on his cousin, Maurice Vaughn, 32, then set him on fire in June of 2009. The fire spread and LeSure’s brother, Matthew LeSure, 26, also died in the fire, from smoke inhalation.
LeSure has been sent for mental health treatment and will be called back to court within a year to see if he is fit to stand trial. The maximum penalty he will now face is life in prison.
Christopher Vaughn
Vaughn, 36, of Oswego, is accused of killing his wife and three children in June 2007.
State Police found their bodies inside the family’s SUV while it was parked on an Interstate 55 frontage road in Will County. Vaughn’s wife, Kimberly, 34, and children Abigayle, 12, Cassandra, 11, and Blake, 8, had been shot to death as they sat in the car. The maximum penalty he now will face is life in prison.
Hector Mauricio
Mauricio, 24, of Aurora, was convicted of the May 2007 murder of 83-year-old Aurora Township World War II veteran Roscoe Ebey, who was killed during a botched robbery. Due to Ebey’s age, Mauricio was eligible for death. After the state Senate passed the repeal of the death penalty, prosecutors asked the judge to delay sentencing until after Quinn made a decision. A judge ruled Mauricio eligible for death due to Ebey’s age. He could be sentenced March 23. Although the death penalty ban does not go into affect until July 1, Quinn promised to commute any death sentences imposed before July.
Aurelio Montano
Montano, 55, of Aurora, is charged in the 1990 death of his wife, Guadalupe Maria Montano, whose body has not been found. Montano is already serving life in prison for ordering the murders of a man and woman in July 1996. He faces up to life in prison. His next court appearance is set for Friday.
Jaime Diaz
Diaz, 33, formerly of Aurora, is charged with shooting Brendon Anderson of Geneva and Elias Calcano of Aurora in 1998. The bodies of the men, both 21, were found in an Aurora alley doused in gasoline. He could be sentenced to life in prison. His next court appearance is set for March 31.
Darren Denson
Denson, 39, formerly of Chicago, is charged in the 2003 murder of Kyle Juggins.
Juggins was killed during an armed robbery home invasion on Elgin’s west side. Denson is already serving a 50-year sentence in Wisconsin for the murder of John Bagin of Milwaukee. He is scheduled to be in court Friday.
Frank Hill
Hill, 33, of Gilberts, is accused of murdering his estranged girlfriend, Karyn Pearson, in a January 2007 fire that left the 27-year-old woman’s body burned beyond recognition in her Gilberts townhome. He is scheduled to be in court Friday.
http://beaconnews.suntimes.com/news/4223896-418/local-men-on-death-row-or-facing-death-penalty.html
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