"Any charges of politics are baseless," Tomczak said in a statement the day after Fox's arrest. Melissa Fox is the mother of Riley fox and the then-wife of Kevin Fox. Mark M. Strothmann, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Wilmington, quoting Mark 10:14. For all his initial trepidation, Kevin took to fatherhood in a way that surprised even his closest family. Info: 773-581-9000. ", Today, in recalling this part of the interrogation, Kevin weeps. "The people lack the probable cause to continue to hold him on these charges and would be unable to meet our burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt." Previously, he was a national news correspondent based in Washington, D.C. for NBC News from 2004-2008. About a mile away as the crow flies, a Wilmington mother and daughter had decided to search Forsythe Woods, a sprawling forest preserve with dense growth cut by a tributary of the Kankakee River called Forked Creek. Tomczak added other details: The girl had been placed in the water while she was still "alive and moving and kicking." Three years later, in 2000, with Kevin having found work as a union painter and Melissa as a waitress, the two were married. She put her hand on Kevin's leg. Kevin likes to keep his private life under wraps, and hence his present whereabouts are unclear. At 8:32 a.m., detectives turned on the video camera and began to tape Kevin's statement. The trip to the Ozarks had been for another friend's wedding. "See all that red?" Are you kidding me?" On October 26th, Swearengen called Kevin Fox to say, by Kevin's account, that there was news about the case and that the Foxes should come to the police station that night. Life will never be the same for any of us.". Though the police denied using force, Kevins attorney had the DNA from the crime scene tested against Kevins own DNA. The case has set in motion a series of events that bitterly divided what had been a neighborly town; cast a shadow of suspicion over a tight-knit, well-respected family; and raised questions about whether justice was forsaken for personal and political ambitions. Melissa got the word when she called Kevin to arrange to meet the family at the finish line. June 6, 2004: Kevin Fox of Wilmington reports his 3-year-old daughter, Riley, missing about 8 a.m. Hikers find her body about 3:30 p.m. in nearby creek after massive search. I knew it wasn't true. Very sad. (Through his attorney, Gerald Haberkorn, Hayes denied any allegations of impropriety. "So when you send something to the lab, you monitor it," the Tribune quoted Glasgow as saying. After three hours alone, Melissa grew furious. Great article. What neither Zellner nor Glasgow apparently realized was that the FBI had not tested Riley's DNA. ", In the sorrow-filled twilight of their little girl's death, in the aftermath of an ordeal that could have sent Kevin Fox to death row, Kevin and Melissa have searched for meaning in their anguish. A break in the case could well tip the scales. Again, this was the first he'd heard of it. Why can't I see my husband!'" There's a bowling alley and a post office and a small movie house. Other family members were less comfortable. More than 6,000 people attended the wake-nearly 1,000 more than the entire population of Wilmington. Mar 2020 - Present3 years. Dimitre Dimitrov, 64, allegedly killed his wife, MaryAnn Dimitrov, and himself at the Holly Tree Racquet Club in Wilmington last Tuesday evening. That night, before turning in, Chad peeked into the guest bedroom, where Kevin, Melissa, and Tyler had already crashed. IL NewsDrunken Driver On Wrong Side Of Jefferson Street: Joliet Police ; Joliet, IL News We wanted to know if they had found out what had happened. Today, Chad fumes that his brother was not told earlier. the friend asked. And he had no idea how his car wound up on a security tape. And, most telling, how could detectives ignore that Kevin had not provided a single piece of information that only the killer would have known, such as the whereabouts of Riley's capri pants? "He was crying," she recalls. On the tape, her manner suggests a strict schoolteacher. Jetta Myers graced the couples life with his arrival on December 18, 2017. . "What did he do when he left? . They first tested where Kevin said he had left the body-according to his confession, he had placed it in the water at the base of the Kahler Bridge, slipping once as he made his way down the muddy embankment. "They found her at Forsythe Woods," Curt answered in a broken voice. Among those in attendance, unobtrusive but noticeable, were two men holding video cameras. She adored her father. If you are interested to know where Kevin Fox is today, we have got you covered. His voice trails off. WILMINGTON, IL The authorities at the Wilmington Police Department have obtained a bench warrant to arrest 45-year-old Wilmington resident Scott McCaughn on two felony . When Judge Dan Rozak dismissed the case, the courtroom exploded into applause and cheering. As for sexual abuse, "I'm not a stupid person," Melissa says. And if it became clear that there was no new information they should leave immediately. Indeed, by late October of 2004 Kevin was the prime suspect. The band broke into song. At last, eight days later, Zellner stood near a fax machine in Glasgow's office. We found 59 records for Kevin Fox in Wilmington, IL. Kevin Fox and his then-wife Melissa's daughter Riley went missing June 6, 2004. "You don't have much time," Hayes warned. "For a state's attorney not to know of such a meeting of his detectives in such a high-profile case would be unheard of," she claims. It had all happened so quickly-had seemed to make so much sense in the moment. Guilfoyle, meanwhile, began banging handcuffs on the table in front of Kevin. To escape from their past, the couple left their Wilmington home and moved to a Chicago suburb. Her husband, Kevin, stayed home with her son, Tyler and her three-year-old daughter, Riley. You're put into a cramped room and subjected to an unusually long interrogation. "I was raised with the idea that authorities were good people and that they should be respected.". By her account, Swearengen said that he suspected that Kevin had bumped Riley's head, perhaps while opening the bathroom door, and had panicked when it appeared she was dead. . He then ran next door, where Riley's best friend lived. Kevin Corke currently serves as an FNC correspondent based in Washington, DC. But because so many people had called with similar observations about the Foxes' spending habits, the station decided it couldn't ignore the rumors.). "We'll see," the defense attorney shot back. Rather than providing a running narrative, she says, Kevin often simply answered "yes" or "no" to the detectives' questions. He had been moved to protective custody, but that didn't protect him from threats on his life and threats of being raped. The next day, an article and editorial in the local paper, The Free Press Advocate, excoriated Jacobson and NBC 5 and told the family's account: Melissa had traded in the car because she couldn't bear how it reminded her of trips around town with Riley. She wore a flamingo decorated T-shirt, dirtied now by mud and silt. For the first time publicly, Kevin and his wife, Melissa, talk about their ordeal, an account of pain, mystery, and undying faith, wrapped around an enduring tragedy Five months after. and we stand behind them.". How solid was the evidence? According to the sheriff's summary, this is what he said: He came home at about 1:30 a.m., ate a snack, and then watched television, including an adult video. They simply broke him down psychologically to a point where he believed that the only way he was going to get this nightmare to stop was to confess. "I had never even met him before and he was just screaming in my face. The Tribune quickly threw its editorial support to Glasgow, saying on October 22nd that he didn't "carry the burden of doubts about the ethical conduct of his campaign.". The few clues that might have pointed to other suspects were either discounted or ignored. After three weeks, however, the lab still had not received Riley's DNA. The entire time, detective Edward Hayes, who would become the lead detective on the case, watches from the other side of a one-way mirror. Chad recalls the moment vividly: "Kevin looked at me and said, I didn't do this. (A water usage report from that night suggests that the washing machine did not run.) In a case that saw numerous twists and even a false arrest, justice was finally delivered when the perpetrator was caught and made to pay for his crimes. Kevins then-wife, Melissa, was away in Chicago during that weekend, and on June 5, Kevin decided to attend a concert in Chicago. Not fair! What's more, investigators would be able to place the car along the route that led to Forsythe Woods, where Riley's body had been found. Suspicion hung over her family as time went by. More than six months later, DCFS reported finding no evidence to support the allegation. A little before eight in the morning, however, Tyler came into Kevin's room. Most important, Kevin says, he trusted the detectives' motives. But he agreed with Zellner. . Most of those who knew Kevin and the rest of the Fox family believed in his innocence. Chad Fox looked on the rumors as confirmation that Kevin-still not represented by a lawyer-was a suspect, perhaps the only suspect. Law Offices of Kathleen T. Zellner, 1901 Butterfield Rd, Suite 650, Downers Grove, IL, 60515 (630) 955-1212 kathleen.zellner@gmail.com. "We think you were involved." Little did he know that a few hours later, he would be waking up to the worst nightmare of his life and that his beloved daughter would be taken away from him forever. The murder of his daughter remains unsolved. As a result, Fox spent nearly eight months in prison on a capital murder charge before being exonerated by DNA evidence. She quickly became known around town as the precocious little girl who loved Dora the Explorer, the kind of child who insisted on picking out her own flower girl dress-only after plis and curtsies in front of a mirror. The Tribune reported last year that while the FBI had paid $10,000 to Trisha Kiefer, Eby's former girlfriend, for her help in solving one of the Chicago region's most notorious crimes, the Fox . "They thought they had me convinced," she says. (Lyons did not return calls seeking comment.). But early Sunday morning, Tyler woke up Kevin to tell him that Riley was missing. Christmas passed with Kevin still in jail, then New Year's, and Kevin's 28th birthday on January 4th. While much of his work there involved coverage of the Bush Administration as a member of . In early October, Chad, a stockbroker, approached Zellner, who coincidentally worked across the hall from Chad in Naperville. The parents' doting nature meant that Riley and Tyler rarely strayed far from their sight. Melissa reeled. "They did everything together," recalls Curt Fox, Kevin's dad. A few hours later, at a reception at the Park Hyatt, Kevin drew on the moment as he stood to toast his brother, Chad, and Chad's new wife, Stacy. Some people still thought he was a murderer. Kevin worked as a union painter to earn a living, while Melissa got a job as a waitress. Kevin Fox was eventually released, and the case against him was dismissed. But when one of Zellner's assistants tried to do so with a 40-pound bag-the approximate weight of Riley at the time of the murder-the bag was blocked by debris. Zellner filed the lawsuit on behalf of the Foxes in November 2004, in U.S. District Court in Chicago, claiming a violation of due process, malicious prosecution, false imprisonment, and defamation. The questions started out easy, but quickly became pointed. "Are you kidding me?" She phoned a forensic scientist, who explained what that meant: the state crime lab simply didn't have the sophisticated capabilities that would be needed to test properly for the substance. Pluth asks again. He was cordial, they recall, but he also insisted that the two be separated. This time there were no cameras or tape recorders. The detective surmised that Kevin had applied the duct tape and committed the sexual assault to make it look as if the little girl had been kidnapped. You're told there is overwhelming evidence against you, including a failed polygraph. If he slipped in the mud, why were his clothes not muddy? Melissa knew by their faces that the news was grim. Check Background Get Contact . As for Tyler, Kevin had no idea his son had made such a statement-it was the first he'd heard of it. Kenneth J. As the day wore on, local merchants pitched in with food and pop. For Chad, the fight to clear his kid brother's name became a crusade. Zellner also began looking into an element that seemed to have been forgotten: the DNA evidence taken from Riley. Kevin says he was incredulous. "We really tried to stay the course," he told reporters. Subscribe to one or more of our free e-mail newsletters to get instant updates on local news, events, and opportunities in Chicago. The girl was kidnapped from. Disappearance [ edit] According to the summary, Kevin thought of driving to his mother-in-law's house, or perhaps taking Riley to the hospital. She'd be a great big sister.". She was three years old at the time of her death. he asks. He spent eight months in prison before he was released and ultimately cleared through DNA evidence. $271,900. To accommodate the expected crowds, Riley's viewing, five days after the murder, was held at the town's largest church, St. Rose Catholic. In his 2007 budget, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich included a similar initiative that would add eight forensic scientists to the state's crime labs. Zellner says she also was struck by the unwavering belief in Kevin's innocence by the family, particularly Melissa. When you see your daughter dead, with dirt and mud on her face . the cops, the judge, the seeming confidence of the state's attorney, and, most of all, the confession. ", Shortly after the bond hearing, Tomczak, Will County Sheriff Paul Kaupas, and other authorities held a press conference outside the Wilmington police station. Ran next door, where Riley 's DNA that his brother was told. 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