Judge finds Joliet man not guilty of attempted murder

A judge found a Joliet man not guilty of attempted murder but found him guilty of other charges that said he caused great bodily harm, permanent disability and disfigurement to his ex-girlfriend by beating her three years ago.

Judge Dan Rippy delivered his verdict Thursday following a three-day bench trial of Jason Errichetto, 47. Rippy found Errichetto guilty of three counts of aggravated domestic battery, four counts of aggravated battery and one count of domestic battery for striking his ex-girlfriend on Nov. 30, 2017.

Rippy did not find Errichetto guilty of attempted murder, the most serious charge he faced.

“As I argued at the outset, there was absolutely no evidence of intent to kill,” said Errichetto’s attorney, Chuck Bretz.

Errichetto is scheduled for sentencing Oct. 23. Bretz said he intends to file a post-trial motion asking Rippy to reconsider his guilty verdicts.

Will County Assistant State's Attorney Adam Capelli said during his closing argument that prosecutors believed there was evidence Errichetto tried to kill his ex-girlfriend three years ago in Rockdale and that his actions seen in surveillance video showed a complete disregard for human decency.

Capelli said Errichetto was seen on video treating the woman “like a piece of meat” and then abandoning her after he attacked her.

“He didn’t care what happened to her,” he said.

Capelli argued if Errichetto didn’t do anything wrong, then there was no reason for him not to call 911 after the incident.

Bretz argued there was no proof Errichetto was “enraged” with his ex-girlfriend or he intended to kill her. He said there was no evidence of threats or a motive that he wanted to kill her.

“That is complete and total speculation,” he said.

He argued none of the woman’s injuries were life-threatening and that her more severe injuries could have been caused by a “terrible fall.”

Errichetto previously pleaded guilty to domestic battery in July 16, 2015. He was sentenced to 30 months' probation but prosecutors filed a petition to revoke it after his November 2017 arrest. The petition remains pending in court.