WAUKEGAN, Ill. (AP) — Grieving relatives and survivors of a mass shooting at a 2022 July Fourth parade recounted harrowing details for hours in a packed courtroom this week, telling a judge that the attack has done long-lasting damage.
But the man who admitted to carefully planning the shooting, and was sentenced to life in prison Thursday for killing seven people and wounding 48, remained out of sight in his jail cell.
The long-awaited sentencing hearing for Robert E. Crimo III brought together dozens of people whose lives were torn apart by the shooting in suburban Highland Park north of Chicago. Even as they were accustomed to Crimo’s erratic behavior — skipping hearings, firing attorneys and pleading guilty moments before trial — survivors said his absence set off a range of emotions, including relief, anger and closure.
“I don’t have to think about him anymore. I don’t have to worry about him anymore,” said Liz Turnipseed, who was seriously injured in the shooting and now relies on a cane. “I don’t need to see his face. I know what he looks like.”
Lake County Judge Victoria Rossetti handed down seven sentences of life in prison for Crimo, as prosecutors requested, for the first-degree murder charges after hearing evidence prosecutors prepared for trial and hours of emotional testimony. She also sentenced Crimo to 50 years for 48 counts of attempted murder. There’s no possibility of parole.
“This court has absolutely no words that could adequately describe and capture the horror and pain that was inflicted on July 4th,” the judge said. She added that Crimo “is irretrievably depraved, permanently incorrigible, irreparably corrupt and beyond any rehabilitation.”
Dozens were wounded in the shooting as Crimo fired 83 rounds in 40 seconds, according to authorities. The injured ranged in age from their 80s to an 8-year-old boy who was left paralyzed from the waist down.
Some survivors called Crimo “cowardly” for not attending, while others said seeing him caused anxiety. One cited their faith in forgiving him. Another said he hoped Crimo suffered each day behind bars.
Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering, who marched in the 2022 parade, said Crimo’s absence was actually helpful.
“The fact that the offender wasn’t there gave people almost the space to be more relaxed and more comfortable sharing their individual stories,” she told reporters after…