WOMAN WHO BOUGHT GUN USED IN SHOOTING WANTS RELEASE
An Indiana woman who admitted she illegally bought a gun tied to a deadly police shooting at Chicago’s Swedish Hospital is petitioning for house arrest before she is sentenced.
Olivia Burgos, 23, of La Porte, pleaded guilty during a court hearing Wednesday in the U.S. District Court in Hammond to making a false statement in connection with the acquisition of a firearm.
Magistrate John Martin indicated in court that if house arrest were granted, it would likely be just part-time. A hearing is scheduled for July 15.
A sentencing date before Senior Judge James Moody will be set at a later time.
Chicago Police Officer John Bartholomew, 38, died in the April 25 shooting. His partner, Nelson Crespo, was critically wounded.
Burgos bought the Glock 29 gun at Range USA in Merrillville in May 2024 for her then-boyfriend, a felon, who gave her the money to buy it, Assistant U.S. Attorney Caitlin Padula said previously.
Defense lawyer Visvaldis Kupsis argued in a previous hearing that her drug addiction left her vulnerable to her boyfriend’s taking advantage of her.
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Alphanso Talley, 26, is charged in the hospital shooting.
COURT DENIES APPEAL FOR WOMAN IN EX-GIRLFRIEND’S DEATH
The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected Lydia Conley’s latest appeal last month in her ex-girlfriend’s death. She appealed after her bid for post-conviction relief was denied.
Conley, 43, formerly of Chicago, was sentenced in June 2022 to 70 years for the Oct. 27, 2019, shooting death of Delilah Martinez, 40, according to Post-Tribune archives.
In a 3-0 decision, Appeals Judge Paul Mathias wrote that she hadn’t proved she had ineffective counsel.
However, Mathias wrote that defense lawyer John Cantrell should have objected on hearsay to a witness who said Conley told Martinez she would hurt her before her death.
However, it wasn’t enough to grant her post-conviction relief bid, Mathias wrote.
The criminal case was “not just compelling, it was overwhelming,” he wrote.
She can appeal to the Indiana Supreme Court.
Her earliest release date is in December 2072.