A Marseilles man was convicted Friday of killing his father on Father’s Day weekend 2024. Logan Petre, 22, faces up to 60 years for murder, with possibly more time coming if convicted of another pending charge.

Petre will stand for sentencing on Nov. 24 in La Salle County Circuit Court for strangling his father, Leo Petre.

In my opinion, it shows his arrogance, his attempt to manipulate the judge, thinking that she’s new.

—  Joe Navarro, La Salle County State's Attorney

In a lengthy oral ruling, La Salle County Circuit Judge Michelle A. Vescogni rejected Logan’s arguments that he killed his father in self-defense.

“This is was not second-degree murder, this was not involuntary manslaughter, this was first-degree murder,” Vescogni said.

Logan Petre immediately protested in open court and demanded a “retrial.”

“Your honor, am I able to talk?” he asked as corrections officers whisked him away.

“No,” Vescogni replied, “you’re removed from the courtroom.”

Actually, it was the third time Petre was removed from the courtroom. He was brought in heavily manacled to hear his verdict – he allegedly struck and hurt two corrections officers recently in La Salle County Jail, according to open court testimony Friday – and then twice taken out as attorneys argued over whether to keep him restrained.

“Where’s my justice? Where’s my liberty? I have rights,” Petre could be heard screaming from down a secured corridor.

Petre was eventually returned to court, comparatively calm, to learn his fate.

During the intermittent bench trial begun in spring, Petre and Ottawa defense attorney Ryan Hamer had argued Leo Petre was impaired by alcohol and cocaine and head-butted Logan, initiating an altercation in which Logan feared for his life.

But Assistant La Salle County State’s Attorney Jeremiah Adams had argued Logan Petre murdered his father – period. Logan Petre, after inflicting the fatal injuries, showered, placed his clothes into the washing machine, and told his elderly grandmother not to call police but to instead help dispose of the body.

Vescogni, a newly elevated felony judge trying her first murder, took the case under advisement four weeks ago. Friday, she read from a written ruling in which she zeroed in on the pathologist’s finding that the cause of death was strangulation as well as Logan’s attempts to clean the crime scene.

The judge also picked apart Logan’s video-recorded statement (five hours in length) to Marseilles police, in which his story migrated and he made various incriminating statements.

Vescogni said she didn’t believe Logan’s statements to police, save for one: When police asked how long he held Leo in a neck hold, Logan answered, “Ten minutes. At least probably five.”

That, according to the pathologist, was enough to kill Leo – and enough, the judge ruled, to find Logan guilty of murder.

La Salle County State’s Attorney Joe Navarro said after the ruling that Vescogni “made the absolutely correct verdict and decision” and suggested that Petre pushed his luck arguing self-defense with a first-time felony judge.

“Most people in a case like this don’t testify,” Navarro said. “In my opinion, it shows his arrogance, his attempt to manipulate the judge, thinking that she’s new.”

The sentencing range for first-degree murder is 20 to 60 years with no possibility of probation.

However, Petre has several open cases and one is for home invasion. If convicted of that, Petre would be required by statute to serve a sentence of six to 30 years back-to-back with whatever he gets for murder on Nov. 24.