A judge ruled that Highland Park shooting suspect Robert Crimo III will remain in jail Wednesday during a court appearance in Lake County, Illinois.
The state filed a written motion without bail and said it would seek a conviction with life in prison. Lake County Bond Court Judge Theodore Potkonjak ordered Crimo to be held without bail.
“The judge has determined that he will be held without bail and there is probable cause to hold him at this time on seven counts of first degree murder,” the Lake County state’s attorney said. , Eric Rinehart, to reporters outside the Lake County Courthouse after the hearing.
“Based on the information the inquest has produced so far, the judge concluded that the evidence was of such a standard that he would be held without bail also on the basis that he is a mandatory life sentence,” he added.
Additional details were developed during Crimo’s bail hearing.
Assistant State’s Attorney Ben Dillon described the events on July 4, saying surveillance video from the scene showed a person running west with a black bag over their shoulder immediately after the shooting. As he was running, a cloth-wrapped object fell on the sidewalk. The suspect left the object and continued running. The object was recovered and identified as a Smith & Wesson M&P15 – an AR-15 style semi-automatic rifle – with a cartridge in the chamber, but no magazine inserted, Dillion said.
Crimo provided investigators with a voluntary statement confessing to his actions and identified himself in still images as the person fleeing the scene when the gun fell from the bag, according to Dillon.
Dillon added that Crimo told law enforcement that he “looked down, aimed and opened fire” on parade spectators and fired two full magazines before putting a third into a rifle. Crimo continued firing before fleeing the roof, Dillon said. Three 30-round magazines and 83 spent cartridge cases were recovered, he said.
Crimo also said he dressed up as a woman and covered his tattoos with makeup to avoid recognition, according to the prosecutor.
The judge has set the next hearing in the Crimo case for July 28.