Suspects in murders appear in court; gag order still in place
By Brian Stanley and Jon Seidel bstanley@stmedianetwork.com, jseidel@suntimes.com March 11, 2013 12:42PM
Nicole Jones, 2nd from right, mother of Eric Glover, talks with Heather Gossman, 23, of Joliet, who was the fiance of the Hickory Street murder victim, as they leave the Will County Courthouse after a hearing of the four charged with the murder of her son and Terrence Rankins in Joliet, Illinois on Monday March 11, 2013. | Matt Marton~Sun-Times Media
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Updated: April 13, 2013 6:21AM
The four suspects in Joliet’s Hickory Street murders appeared in Will County court Monday morning, but were only referred to indirectly throughout the proceedings.
Adam Landerman, Alyssa Massaro, Bethany McKee and Joshua Miner all sat silently in the jury box wearing blue jail scrubs. They are charged with the murders of Eric Glover and Terrance Rankins, whose strangled bodies were found Jan. 10 inside Massaro’s home at 1121 N. Hickory St.
Authorities say the four robbed and strangled Glover and Rankins, and then Landerman and Massaro continued to party and play video games with Miner. A source also confirmed that police reports, which contain conflicting interviews with the suspects, allege Miner and Massaro had sex on the victims’ bodies.
They had a plan to dismember the bodies before disposing of them, according to the reports, and they talked about keeping the teeth as trophies.
All four suspects are being held in the Will County Jail in lieu of $10 million bail each.
Files sealed
Earlier this month, Judge Gerald Kinney sealed the court files and ordered law enforcement and attorneys not to talk publicly about the case, in response to police reports that were leaked to the media. On Monday, Kinney did not hold a hearing on a motion to repeal the gag order on the entire case files by The Sun-Times after a defense lawyer claimed they had not been properly notified.
Kinney did schedule hearings about a subpoena for a reporter from Patch.com, who first published confidential information taken from police reports. Kinney also scheduled a hearing to discuss appointing a special prosecutor to the case.
Meanwhile, Plainfield officials agreed to postpone Landerman’s scheduled sentencing for underage drinking until after the murder case is resolved.
Prosecutors also agreed to return the Dodge Caravan McKee was driving in Kankakee the night she was arrested.
McKee and her young daughter were stopped after McKee’s father reported the murders to police. The vehicle belongs to McKee’s grandmother and none of the attorneys will require it to present their defense.
