Illinois prosecutors still seeking death penalty

CHICAGO -- A man convicted of fatally beating his girlfriend's 2-year-old son could become the first person to be sentenced to death since George Ryan gave clemency to all death row inmates, prosecutors said Tuesday.

Parker is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 4, and prosecutors will seek death, according to Jodee Sargeant, spokeswoman for the Cook County state's attorney.

A Cook County jury convicted Christopher Parker last summer for the New Year's Eve 1997 murder of Joshua Sandifer, his girlfriend's son from a previous relationship.

Parker, 29, punched the toddler with a closed fist because Sandifer had been wetting himself, Sargeant said.

After beating the child, Parker "then placed the victim in the bed and proceeded to have sex with the mother in the same bed," Sargeant added.

If Parker is condemned, he would become the first defendant sentenced to die in Illinois since Ryan commuted the sentences of all on death row.

Even so, Parker would not be alone for long. Sixty or more capital cases are pending across the state.

Cook County alone has about 50 cases in which the state has said it will seek the death penalty, said Sargeant.

In Kane County, State's Attorney Meg Gorecki said Tuesday, "A political decision by a governor will have no influence over what we do in our individual offices."

Of the 40 murder cases pending in Gorecki's jurisdiction, prosecutors will carry forward plans to seek the death penalty in four of them, she said.

In nearby DuPage County, State's Attorney Joseph Birkett said his office intends to seek the death penalty in four of its 22 pending murder cases.

"We are going to continue doing our jobs," Birkett said.

In Will County prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Brian Nelson who is charged with killing four people including his girlfriend.

His trial is expected to begin in the fall.

Jury selection is underway in a capital case in Winnebago county where William Buck is charged with killing a police officer.

Shelton O. Green, chief of the murder task force for the Cook County public defender's office, said he is concerned Ryan's decision has incited a backlash.

Green's office defends the accused in roughly 80 percent of all capital cases in Cook County.

"We believe it has had an impact on the judges and prosecutors," Green said of Ryan's blanket clemency. "They will now be more dedicated or more motivated to filling death row back up with new defendants -- whether they are guilty or not."