‘This is what domestic violence looks like’: DeKalb County State’s Attorney on life sentence for Beaver Dam man in 2019 murder of former Sycamore prosecutor

Ulisses Medina Espinosa (shown) was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his ex-wife Stacia Hollinshead, a Sycamore local and DeKalb County prosecutor after the brutal slaying in March of 2019 in front of their young daughter. (Photo by Beaver Dam Daily Citizen's Terri Pederson)

DeKalb County State’s Attorney Rick Amato traveled north to Beaver Dam, Wisconsin this week to testify in the sentencing hearing of Ulisses Medina Espinosa, found guilty of slaying his ex-wife, a former DeKalb County prosecutor brutally in 2019 in front of their 5-year-old daughter.

Espinosa was sentenced by Dodge County Circuit Court Judge Joseph Sciascia to life in prison without opportunity for parole, according to a report from the Beaver Dam Daily Citizen.

Amato, who’s office Stacia Hollinshead, 30, worked in, spoke to the Daily Chronicle this week about the case and how indicators such as stalking and compulsive behaviors -- which Espinosa exhibited prior to murdering Hollinshead -- need to be better red-flagged in the court system so tragedies such as this one don’t happen again.

“This was all about domestic violence,” Amato said. “This is what domestic violence looks like. It’s all about power and control, and he was going to exert his power over her no matter how successful [the court was] in taking that away from him.”

Hollinshead was a native of Effingham, Illinois and a budding lawyer who’d just landed a job in the state’s attorney’s office, and was remembered as a devoted mother. She graduated from Northern Illinois University College of Law in May 2018 after being a U.S. Army intelligence analyst for 11 years. Hollinshead had filed for divorce from Medina Espinosa in 2016 and filed for a protective order against him the same year.

In the two years since her death, Hollinshead’s former coworkers have created the Stacia Hollinshead Veterans Program to honor her legacy. Since March 2019, the advocacy program has helped local veterans in and out of the court system struggling with substance abuse issues, PTSD, anger or medical issues and placed them in programs through the Hines VA in Maywood, offering both inpatient and outpatient care instead of jail time.

Start by believing

Medina Espinosa was charged in March 2019 with the shooting death of Hollinshead, who worked as an assistant state’s attorney in the DeKalb County State’s Attorney’s office. He was placed in custody with a $2 million bond. Hollinshead had sought legal protection against him prior to her death, according to DeKalb County court records, including orders of protection and fighting for custody over their daughter, the latter of which was taken away from him, ruled a DeKalb County Judge prior to the murder.

By law, Medina Espinosa was not supposed to be at the home of his parents when Hollinshead brought her daughter to visit that day. But he was.

The shooting took place at a Third Street residence in Beaver Dam when Hollinshead had driven to Wisconsin that day with her 5-year-old daughter so that the girl could visit her grandparents – Medina Espinosa’s parents. Hollinshead was shot 15 times while the girl was in a nearby room after Medina Espinosa entered the home. After the shooting, court records show Medina Espinosa knelt by his daughter and told her “the judge won’t hurt us anymore.”

In Wisconsin, first-degree murder convictions carry a life sentence by law, subject to parole in a number of years defined by the judge. In Espinosa’s case, the prosecution had asked for parole to be an option in no less than 50 years, the defense asking for it at 30 years. The judge this week decided no parole option would be granted due to the nature of the case, including that Espinosa consistently chose not to follow rulings by a judge such as to not see his child or to stay away from Hollinshead, Amato said.

In Illinois, however, Amato said, first-degree murder convictions, by statute, come with a 20-to-60 year prison sentence, depending on the case and the judge. The Illinois Department of Corrections also handles probation, but the eligibility period--the point at which a convicted inmate can become eligible--is recommended by court services, not the prosecution or defense attorneys.

In Illinois for a first-degree murder conviction, if there was a weapon involved, an extended sentence could occur.

But the mandatory life sentencing and how parole is handled for a crime of this nature as it stands by Wisconsin law “makes so much more sense,” Amato said. Those eligible for parole in Wisconsin are then under the scrutiny of the state’s Department of Corrections, a team tasked with evaluating each potential parolee based on behavior in prison, and a number of rehabilitation measures which Amato said don’t exist in Illinois.

In Illinois, parole is determined county by county, with court service staff making determinations.

Hollinshead’s death is another tragic reminder that there are changes to be made beyond just the law, Amato said.

“We need to get away from societal acceptance of violence against women,” he said. “We have to be able as a society to recognize these red flags, these escalations, attempts to continue control.”

According to DeKalb County court records, Espinosa made reports that were later determined by a judge to be false, against Hollinshead, alleging child abuse in an attempt to get their daughter taken from Hollinshead’s custody.

“So as a society, we need to be able to understands these situations because without it, women’s blood is just getting shed state to state, coast to coast,” Amato said, adding the abuse, as in this case, often involves traumatizing children, too. “We need to understand that these traumas leave a lasting mark on these children.”

Are there additional measures to be taken in the court system to help prevent future tragedies like this one?

“Start by believing,” Amato said. “Nobody wants to be in these situations having to report these personal issues to somebody outside of their family unit. So we need to pay attention from the get go, believe them and seek help where we can get it.”

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