A lengthy investigation and an 11-day trial culminated this week in a quick verdict by jurors to convict Gary Bennett of killing Keith Crawford in 2014.
Kane County State’s Attorney Joe McMahon acknowledged it’s not easy to interpret the jury deliberation process, let alone the one that only needed about two-and-a-half hours to find Bennett guilty of murder. Speaking at his monthly press briefing on Thursday, McMahon highlighted the panel’s attentiveness to sophisticated and technical evidence which became a focal point, as well as their decision, in what he called an “incredibly violent case.”
“We try to organize (evidence in a case) in a way that’s understandable … present it as clearly as we can,” McMahon said, speaking in detail for the first time since the trial’s conclusion. “The jury reached the right verdict in this case.”
Bennett, formerly of Algonquin, was convicted of shooting Crawford, of Bartlett, his drug dealer, to death inside an SUV on Route 31 in West Dundee in August 2014. A team of investigators from West Dundee, Bartlett, the Kane County Major Crimes Task Force, FBI and U.S. Marshal’s Service needed the better part of a year to probe Crawford’s disappearance and, ultimately, put a case together against Bennett, who killed Crawford and dumped his body in an Elgin garbage container over a drug debt, according to prosecutors. Crawford’s body has never been found, another wrinkle prosecutors had to deal with.
McMahon said he joined assistants Joe Cullen and Vincent Coyle on the case for a few reasons, including a personal reminder of the time commitment and challenges involved in prosecuting crimes. He praised the work and preparation done by Cullen and Coyle to develop an “impactful” presentation that gave jurors all the relevant facts. He also mentioned the effort of Bennett’s “very experienced” attorney, Stephen Richards.
Although the murder of a drug dealer doesn’t often get much attention, McMahon said, “every murder case is important” and this particular prosecution showed his office works aggressively to hold offenders accountable.
“That was one of the most important parts of this case,” he explained.
Bennett returns to court April 20 for a hearing relating to post-trial motions. His sentencing date will be set at that time.
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Dan Campana is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.