Further Waller charges likely to be minimal

An Illinois prosecutor said no one in Missouri law enforcement has talked to him about filing additional charges against Clay Waller.

But a legal expert said Tuesday there may be a practical reason for that.

Earlier this month, as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors, Clay Waller admitted to killing his estranged wife, Jacque, and burying her body in a secluded area near Devil's Island in Alexander County, Ill.

Waller pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Missouri law requires him to serve at least 85 percent of that sentence, which runs concurrently with a five-year federal sentence he is serving for making online threats against his wife's sister, Cheryl Brenneke.

During the June 6 hearing at which Waller entered his plea, assistant prosecuting attorney Angel Woodruff noted that she could not control any other jurisdictions where Waller might face charges.

"I cannot bind the state of Illinois, and I cannot bind the federal government," she said at the hearing.

Bill Schroeder, a law professor at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, said the details of the case make it unlikely that either jurisdiction could add much to Waller's punishment.

Had Jacque Waller been alive when Clay Waller took her to Illinois, he could face federal charges for transporting a kidnapping victim across state lines, but that law does not apply if the victim is dead, Schroeder said.

The crime did not involve a firearm, did not occur on federal property and did not involve a civil rights violation, any of which could carry federal charges, Schroeder said.

"I think you're going to have trouble getting a big whack here," he said.

Schroeder said under Illinois law, Waller could be charged with concealment of a homicidal death, a Class 3 felony that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

"It's not a huge penalty," Schroeder said. "It's hardly worth the trouble. … I think the bottom line is that there's really nothing more that's going to be possible to get him for that's meaningful."

Alexander County State's Attorney Jeffery Farris said he would be willing to work with Cape Girardeau County prosecutors to pursue any applicable charges against Waller, but Illinois authorities were not privy to the "fine points of the investigation," so he does not have enough information to file anything at this time.

"I would be amenable unless it would mess up some deal. I would be iffy about doing something that his attorneys would say, 'Hold on, hold on, hold on, I'm going to move to withdraw this guilty plea,'" Farris said.

Cape Girardeau County Sheriff John Jordan said he would like to see more charges against Waller.

"I certainly hope that they do look at every avenue," Jordan said. "… I'm sure that Illinois and the feds will look at whatever possible statutes can possibly be brought to bear fruit, because he's certainly deserving of it."

Waller was brought to Cape Girardeau County after being charged with murder, but he returned to federal custody in Oakdale, La., on June 11 to finish serving his federal sentence -- projected to expire Dec. 6, 2015 -- before he returns to state custody.

Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Chris Limbaugh did not return a phone call seeking comment Tuesday.

epriddy@semissourian.com

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Pertinent address:

Devil's Island, McClure, IL