A judge this week denied a request by Richard Schmelzer to suppress statements he made to police investigating his grandmother’s murder, a ruling which prompted Schmelzer’s attorney to file a speedy trial demand in the two-year-old case, according to court records.
Judge Linda Abrahamson on Wednesday set a Dec. 5 date for Schmelzer to stand trial on allegations he killed Mildred Darrington inside her East Dundee home in 2014 as part of a scheme to obtain his portion of her estate, according to records. Schmelzer, of Frisco, Texas, has denied the charges and remains in Kane County Jail on $5 million bail.
Prosecutors allege Schmelzer drove from Texas to Illinois to commit the crime, leaving behind, among other things, a trail of credit card, GPS and tollway violation records later used by investigators to determine his travels before and after Darrington was found dead, according to records. Additionally, prosecutors obtained Schmelzer’s palm print samples for comparison to prints found inside a car rented by a man in Illinois at Schmelzer’s request. And, video footage from a gas station near Darrington’s home shows the rental car shortly after the time she was killed, court records state.
Detectives with the Kane County Major Crimes Task Force spoke with several people connected to Darrington as part of their investigation, according to records. Schmelzer agreed to an interview while in the area to attend Darrington’s funeral in July 2014. Schmelzer and his attorney, in the motion to suppress statements, contended Schmelzer was improperly held for several hours by authorities and did not voluntarily provide information to police who coerced him into talking. Schmelzer only agreed to waive his right to silence because of exhaustion and duress, the motion explained.
Prosecutors, in their response, said Schmelzer arranged the time and location for the interview with police, was allowed to leave at the interview’s conclusion, and that a video recording of the questioning showed Schmelzer to be aware of what he was doing when he agreed to give up his Miranda rights.
After a series of hearings on the motion, Abrahamson ruled the statements could be used at trial.
Schmelzer is scheduled to return to court Nov. 4, by which time any additional pre-trial motions relating to evidence and testimony are expected to filed.
Dan Campana is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.