* Tribune…

Robert Crimo III unexpectedly pleaded guilty Monday to all charges in the July 4, 2022, Highland Park parade shooting that killed seven people.

Crimo’s trial was set to begin Monday in Lake County Court when his defense attorneys informed Judge Victoria Rossetti that Crimo wished to change his plea to guilty.

The judge then extensively questioned Crimo to make sure he understood what he was doing. […]

The judge set April 23 for a sentencing hearing. By law, Crimo will be sentenced to natural life in prison.

* WGN…

But what happened Monday was not the result of any “deal,” Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart stressed.

“Let me be clear, this was not a negotiation, this was not a deal,” Rinehart told reporters after the hearing at county courthouse in Waukegan. “He made a free decision to plead guilty to every single count. He received nothing in exchange for this plea today.”

Crimo took an “open plea” in the case against him. In doing so, he avoids trial and allows a judge to sentence him without a prior agreement from prosecutors on what sentence they’d recommend. A defendant will sometimes reject an offer or deal in hopes of receiving a lesser sentence from the judge as opposed to what the prosecution might seek.

“This is no agreement whatsoever. He pleaded guilty to every single count,” Rinehart said. “He walked into the courtroom through his attorneys, who are incredibly experienced defense attorneys who have represented him for years.”

* Rep. Bob Morgan responded to Crimo’s guilty plea today…

Today, State Rep. Bob Morgan (D-Deerfield) reacted to the recently announced guilty plea of the Highland Park Mass Shooter (“perpetrator”). The perpetrator pleaded guilty to killing 21 people and wounding dozens of others during the 2022 Fourth of July parade in Highland Park. In 2022, the perpetrator was indicted on 117 charges, including 21 counts of first-degree murder stemming from the mass shooting.

“Today’s guilty plea is welcome news for weary hearts in the Highland Park community”, Rep. Morgan shared. “This is a small step towards justice following the July 4, 2022 mass shooting as we continue to recover and heal.” After pleading guilty to 21 counts of murder and 48 additional counts of attempted murder charges, the perpetrator will now face life imprisonment with no chance of parole. “I want to thank Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart and his exceptional team for helping secure this justice. Our gratitude also extends to the physical and mental health professionals that continue to care for those injured and impacted.”

Rep. Morgan joins the rest of the Highland Park community in mourning the tragic losses of Katherine Goldstein, Irina McCarthy, Kevin McCarthy, Stephen Straus, Jacquelyn Sundheim, Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, and Eduardo Uvaldo, and has been bracing with the rest of the community for a criminal trial. The news of the guilty plea avoids a lengthy trial that was bound to resurface profound trauma in a community that has been forever changed by a morning of violence.

Morgan witnessed the devastating effects that gun violence can have on a community. Highland Park, Illinois is a part of the 58th State Representative District, and Rep. Morgan was present at the July 4th, 2022 mass shooting with his wife and children, during which 83 rounds were fired in less than 60 seconds, killing seven and injuring 48 people.

Six (6) months following the Highland Park mass shooting, Rep. Morgan was the chief sponsor of the Protect Illinois Communities (“PIC”) Act, one of the strongest gun safety laws in the nation. The PIC Act bans the sale of assault weapons, which have been the lethal instruments used in multiple mass shootings, as well as large capacity magazines that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition for a long gun or more than 15 rounds of ammunition for handguns.

* Another bill passed after the parade shooting which expanded police use of drones. WTTW…

While Protecting Illinois Communities Act has received the lion’s share of attention, the shooting at Highland’s Park parade was the catalyst for other laws too, including one (HB3902 / Public Act 103-0101) that gives police greater license to use drones for crowd surveillance.

[Sen. Julie Morrison] said shortly after last year’s parade shooting, she met with area mayors, who told her “we need to have drones. We need the ability to put drones up in the air for our farmers markets, for our art fests, all these public things that we do. And parades.”

Previously, Illinois’ 2014 Freedom from Drone Surveillance Act strictly limited when police and law enforcement could use drones at special events. Drones could only be used for disaster response, with a warrant or there was a high risk of terrorism – limitations intended to protect the privacy of people attending large events.

The downside of those restrictions – the inability for police to surveil festivities like Highland Park’s Fourth of July celebrations, when a drone may have noticed the alleged shooter on a rooftop before he fired – is something Morrison said she hadn’t considered previously, despite (as politicians are wont to do) walking in innumerable parades.