WAUKEGAN, Ill — The trial against a man accused of carrying out a mass shooting at an Independence Day parade in Highland Park, a suburb of Chicago, is scheduled to commence on Monday. The tragic event in 2022 resulted in the deaths of seven individuals and injuries to several others.
Robert Crimo III is facing 21 counts of first-degree murder, three counts for each of the victims, along with 48 counts of attempted murder. Initially, there were 48 additional counts of aggravated battery, but these were dropped by prosecutors ahead of the jury selection process last week.
The path to this trial has encountered several obstacles, largely due to Crimo’s unpredictable behavior, which included his unexpected rejection of a plea bargain, much to the surprise of even his legal team. Over the course of jury selection last week, Crimo appeared erratically in court, sometimes declining to leave his jail cell.
Authorities report that Crimo allegedly took a position on a rooftop and fired into the crowd gathered for the annual Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, which is approximately 30 miles north of Chicago.
Prosecutors have accumulated extensive evidence, including hours of recorded police interrogations during which Crimo allegedly admitted to the crime. Despite this, the 24-year-old has entered a plea of not guilty.
Crimo’s defense team has refrained from making any statements ahead of the trial, which is expected to run for about a month.
Crimo’s father, Robert Crimo Jr., once a candidate for mayor, faces charges related to how his son acquired a gun license. He admitted to seven misdemeanor charges of reckless conduct in 2023 and subsequently served a brief jail sentence.
He regularly attends his son’s court hearings and, despite making eye contact with him during proceedings, has chosen not to elaborate significantly on the case prior to the trial’s commencement. “As a parent, I love my son very much,” he stated. “And Bobby loves this country more than anyone would ever know.”
In the trial, several law enforcement officials and survivors are expected to testify, with prosecutors planning to present videos of Crimo’s interactions with police. Some excerpts from these tapes have previously been shown during court sessions as prosecutors sought to have them excluded from the record.
Crimo’s unpredictable actions have been a factor in delaying legal proceedings. At one point, he dismissed his public defenders with the intent to represent himself, only to change his mind later. In June 2024, just when he seemed poised to accept a plea deal giving victims and their families an opportunity to address him, he appeared in court in a wheelchair and declined the offer.
In Highland Park, a community of about 30,000 people situated along Lake Michigan, the shooting’s aftermath has left a deep, lasting impact. Jury selection was partially affected as some potential jurors were dismissed due to their connection to the incident.
While the city’s traditional parade was canceled in 2023 in favor of a “community walk,” this event was reinstated on a new path the following year, accompanied by a memorial for those who lost their lives.
Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering expressed the community’s continued sorrow and commitment to remembering the tragedy: “Our community is once again reminded of the immense pain and trauma caused by the Highland Park shooting,” she stated before jury selection began. “Our hearts remain with the victims, their families, and all those whose lives were forever changed by that devastating day.”
The seven people who were killed during the attack were Katherine Goldstein, 64; Jacquelyn Sundheim, 63; Stephen Straus, 88; Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78; Eduardo Uvaldo, 69; along with a married couple, Kevin McCarthy, 37, and Irina McCarthy, 35.
In response to the shooting, survivors and the families of the victims have initiated numerous legal actions, including lawsuits against the manufacturer of the semiautomatic rifle used in the attack, as well as claims directed at authorities accused of negligence.
