|
Prosecutor eyes death penalty in Jada case
StoryDiscussionBill Dolan and Christine Kraly
Times Staff Writers | Posted: Wednesday, July 1, 2009 12:00 am | No Comments Posted
Font Size:Default font sizeLarger font sizeCROWN POINT | Lake County Prosecutor Bernard Carter said Tuesday his office is undertaking a death penalty review against two defendants charged with the murder of 2-year-old Jada Justice.
The prosecutor's office on Friday charged Engelica Castillo, 18, and her boyfriend, Tim Tkachik, 24, both of Hobart, with the murder of the Portage toddler. Tkachik told police Jada died after a June 13 beating administered by Castillo, according to reports. Tkachik helped Castillo dispose of the body in a LaPorte County swamp, authorities said.
Carter said state law permits him to file a capital murder charge in a case where the victim was younger than 12, but he and his top deputies first must survey the evidence to determine if the case merits the ultimate punishment.
"We are still going through a lot of information. A lot of the physical evidence is being examined by our experts. That all has to be assessed before any decision as to a potential death penalty," he said.
Jada's mother, Melissa Swiontek, said Tuesday she supports a death penalty case.
"If that's the court's decision, I'm not going to oppose it," she said.
Swiontek said before her daughter was killed, she used to be against the death penalty. But she has since changed her mind, she said, "when it comes down to your baby."
She said she has no remorse for her cousin or Tkachik, saying "They're not even human ... if they can do that to my Jada.
"My baby's gone. They broke my heart. They have no right to be on this earth, if you ask me."
Lake County Deputy Chief Public Defender David Olson said Tuesday a death penalty charge will affect his office, which will be defending Castillo.
"We are just waiting for the state to decide," Olson said.
He said he would have to request additional tax dollars from the County Council if the prosecutor does go for the death penalty, which usually costs hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional law fees, expert-witness fees and other extraordinary expenses. He said his office will appoint two lawyers to defend Castillo if a capital murder charge is filed.
Olson said, "The question is whether the county can afford it? I don't know. It's very expensive."
Tkachik said Monday he may hire his own lawyer, although court sources said few private lawyers have the resources to undertake a death penalty murder defense.
Olson said a cheaper option for the county would be for the prosecutor to pursue a sentence of life imprisonment without possibility of parole.
Lake and Porter County judges have sentenced more than 23 men and women to death since capital murder was reinstated in 1977, but only one has been executed.
Kevin Charles Isom, 42, is awaiting trial later this fall on capital murder charges he killed his wife and her two children Aug. 6, 2007, at the Lakeshore Dunes Apartments in Gary's Miller section
|
Login
FAQ
Search
