Robert Crimo Jr. entered a guilty plea to seven misdemeanor counts of reckless conduct last week in Lake County court. Crimo sponsored his underage son’s firearm application three years before the July 2022 attack in Highland Park, even though the teenager had recently threatened violence.
Highland Park
Just as proceedings were set to begin, Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart announced that Robert Crimo Jr. had agreed to plead guilty to seven Class A misdemeanor counts of reckless conduct, rather than the seven felony charges he had faced.
The bench trial of Robert Crimo Jr. is set to begin Monday in Lake County, more than 16 months after his son — Robert Crimo III — allegedly killed seven people and wounded dozens more during the Highland Park Fourth of July parade.
Attorneys for Robert Crimo Jr., who is set to go to trial next week on seven counts of reckless conduct, had sought to call his son — alleged parade shooter Robert Crimo III — to testify in his defense.
During a brief case management hearing Monday morning, Judge Victoria Rossetti said she intends to set a trial date for Robert Crimo III when he next appears in court Dec. 11.
Judge George Strickland on Monday denied multiple motions filed on behalf of Robert Crimo Jr., including one that sought to have his criminal charges tossed out based on a violation of the state’s statute of limitations.
The judge said at the hearing in Waukegan, north of Highland Park where the shooting occurred, that he would issue a ruling at the next hearing, on Aug. 28.
Judge George Strickland set a Nov. 6 trial date for Robert Crimo Jr. during a hearing Friday. Crimo Jr. faces seven counts of reckless conduct for allegedly helping his son, Robert Crimo III, obtain a firearm owner’s identification card (FOID) card.
This July 4 in Highland Park, one year after seven people were killed and dozens more wounded in a mass shooting, the sounds of marching bands and cheers were replaced by a much more solemn gathering.
Since the mass shooting at last year’s Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, Illinois has moved swiftly on gun control measures. The most controversial has been the ban on so-called assault weapons.
Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering was marching in last year’s Fourth of July parade when gun shots began to ring out. In the year since, she has seen the town come together in its time of need.
Highland Park’s community emergency response team, or CERT, made up of residents from all walks of life — doctors, businesspeople, scientists — had a vital role to play in response to the mass shooting.
It seemingly took a hometown tragedy to make it happen, but in January the statewide assault weapons ban Illinois legislators who represent Highland Park spent almost a decade fighting for became law – one of several measures Illinois legislators took in direct connection to the shooting.
Since 2016, thousands of Americans have been wounded in mass shootings, and tens of thousands by gun violence. Beyond the colossal medical bills and the weight of trauma and grief, mass shooting survivors and family members contend with scores of other changes that upend their lives.
Tuesday marks the one-year anniversary of the mass shooting that left seven dead and 48 more wounded, and 22-year-old Robert Crimo III remains in custody after being indicted on 117 felony charges — including 21 counts of first-degree murder.
On Monday, WTTW News launches a new initiative, “A Safer City.” In an effort to help facilitate the complicated but necessary conversation around violence, we aim to explore violence in all its forms with depth and nuance.
