‘Evil and manipulative’: Families outraged after Highland Park suspect backs out of plea deal

As family members of victims and survivors looked on in a Lake County courtroom, the man accused of the mass shooting at Highland Park’s 2022 Independence Day parade backed out of plea deal Wednesday morning that would have sent him to prison for the rest of his life.

Appearing in court for what had been anticipated as a resolution to the case, Robert E. Crimo III initially refused to respond when Lake County Judge Victoria Rossetti asked him if he understood and agreed to the proposed agreement.

The Highwood man, dressed in a dark blue jail-issued T-shirt and sitting in a wheelchair, instead silently craned his neck to look around at the gallery of the near-capacity courtroom. Defense attorney Gregory Ticsay stood and walked over to the suspect’s side of the defense table, where they had a brief, hushed conversation.

Rossetti then called a recess and the suspect was wheeled out of court. He returned about 10 minutes later and answered that he had discussed the proposed plea deal with his lawyers.

“And do you wish to go through with that today?” Rossetti asked.

“No,” he replied.

He’s now scheduled to face trial in February on dozens of charges, including 21 counts of first-degree murder.

Under a deal outlined moments earlier by Assistant Lake County State’s Attorney Ben Dillon, the suspect would have admitted guilt to seven counts of first-degree murder and 48 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm — one charge for each person killed or injured in the mass shooting.

He would have been sentenced to natural life in prison on the murder charges, plus an additional 30 years on the remaining counts. Under Illinois law, a life sentence is mandatory for anyone convicted of two or more counts of first-degree murder.

Boxes of tissue and bottles of water stood on the witness stand in anticipation of statements survivors and victims’ family members were expected to deliver during Wednesday’s hearing.

Instead, family members and their attorneys spoke with reporters outside the courthouse in Waukegan after the hearing.

“All I wanted was to be able to fully grieve my mom without the looming trial knowing that he (the defendant) was going to spend the rest of his life in jail,” said Leah Sundheim, daughter of victim Jacki Sundheim. “Instead we were shown his complete and blatant disregard for humans.”

Describing the accused as “evil and manipulative,” Sundheim suggested that he “brought us here today probably knowing what he was going to do.”

Lance Northcutt represents the family of Kevin and Irina McCarthy, whose young son was orphaned after the Highland Park couple was killed at the parade.

“What happened today, make no mistake, was nothing more than a re-victimization of that family and every family that has endured this tragedy,” he said.

Antonio Romanucci, whose law firm represents more than 50 survivors and victims’ family members, described the defendant’s behavior as “a calculated effort on his part to continue the suffering our clients are going through.”

“We can only hope that Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart will bring this case to trial and we will find criminal accountability for this shooter,” he said.

Karina Mendez described her late father Eduardo Uvaldo as a man who encouraged his children to be accountable for their actions.

“I know he’s looking at us now, telling us to be patient,” she said.

In a written statement issued after the plea deal fell through, Rinehart said his office will be ready to try the suspect in February.

“We have worked closely with the victims over the last few days and weeks in anticipation of today,” he said. “We will continue to support them. The entire trial team and group of victim support specialists met with victims and survivors for as long as they wanted today, and we will be ready for trial.”

Authorities say the 23-year-old defendant perched atop a downtown Highland Park rooftop about 10:15 a.m. July 4, 2022 and fired dozens of shots from a military-style rifle into the crowd gathered for the city’s annual July 4 parade.

Killed were Highland Park residents Katherine Goldstein, 64; Stephen Straus, 88; Jacquelyn “Jacki” Sundheim, 63; and Kevin McCarthy, 37, and his wife Irina McCarthy, 35. Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78, of Morelos, Mexico, and Eduardo Uvaldo, 69, of Waukegan, also were killed in the attack.

Nearly 50 people, ranging in age from 8 to 88, were wounded.

The suspect was arrested later that day near Lake Forest, after authorities said he first traveled to Wisconsin intending to perform a second mass shooting but changed his mind.

He has had turbulent interactions with the criminal justice system since. Last year, Rossetti suspended his phone privileges after authorities say he violated jail rules by using another inmate’s PIN number to call his mother. This was after his phone privileges were suspended for threatening corrections officers.

In December the defendant told Rossetti he intended to represent himself at trial. But less than a month later, he changed his mind and requested a Lake County public defender.