The Law Offices of Kathleen Colton, Ltd.
Criminal Defense / P.O. Box 1364 / St. Charles, IL 60174
AURORA MAN ACQUITTED OF MURDER
The Beacon News, June 20, 1998
By Penny Falcon
Staff Writer
For 14 months William Rodriguez Jr., has insisted he had reason to take aim at a car that barreled down the alley near his home.
On Friday, after little more than two hours, jurors in 16th Circuit Court agreed. The jury acquitted the 17-year-old Aurora man of one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder in April 2, 1997, shooting.
Alvaro Garcia, 23, an Aurora man with gang ties, was killed. Two other men, both gang members, were injured.
Rodriguez had testified that the car the men were in had circled the area several times the same day. He told jurors on Thursday that he fired at the vehicle because he saw the muzzle of a gun and believed he was going to be shot at.
“Obviously we’re very pleased.” Said Kathleen Colton, Rodriguez’s attorney, of the decision.
This trial marked the second time a jury heard testimony in this case. The first group of jurors declared themselves at an impasse after more that seven hours of deliberations, prompting the second trial.
Both trials were heard in Judge Donald Hudson’s courtroom.
