Convicted in 2012 of 1957 child-murder, man is freed from life prison term in Friday ruling
Convicted in 2012 of murdering a child in Illinois in 1957, life prisoner Jack McCullough on Friday had his conviction vacated at the request of a DeKalb County state’s attorney who wasn’t involved in the prosecution.
McCullough could still be retried under Friday’s ruling by Judge William Brady, but has meanwhile been released on his own recognizance, reports the Chicago Tribune.
Alibi evidence which was either barred or not available at trial showed that McCullough was, as he claimed, 40 miles away in Rockford when Maria Ridulph, 7, was abducted from Sycamore, an investigative report by State’s Attorney Richard Schmack determined.
McCullough, who said he had been in Rockford trying to enlist in the U.S. Air Force, made a collect call to his parents at 6:57 p.m., phone records show. Ridulph was abducted between 6:45 p.m. and 6:55 p.m., the Tribune reports.
Schmack, who was elected to his position as McCullough’s trial was ending, also criticized a six-photo array from which Ridulph’s playmate identified McCullough as the suspect some 50 years after the crime occurred. Aside from McCullough, all wore suits, Schmack said, and all but McCullough were depicted in a yearbook photo.
Although it appears unlikely that Schmack would pursue a retrial, members of both Ridulph’s family and McCullough’s own family still believe in his guilt, according to NBC Chicago and the Tribune, and a brother of the victim has been seeking the appointment of a special prosecutor.
“This man is a monster, there is no doubt,” his half-sister, Mary Hunt, told NBC Chicago earlier this month. “We all know that he did it.”
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Man convicted in 1957 child-slaying is innocent, top prosecutor says; 3 new lawyers are now on case”
Chicago Tribune (reg. req.): “Request for special prosecutor latest twist in 1957 Sycamore murder case”
