No trial date yet in Kerrigan Rutherford case

YORKVILLE - A Kendall County judge is one step closer to setting a trial date for the mother and stepfather of Kerrigan Rutherford, a 6 year old who was found dead in in her home in the unincorporated Boulder Hill subdivision last July 2.

Courtny and James Davidson, 33 and 29, of Mendota, appeared in court Monday, March 8, on charges of involuntary manslaughter and endangering the life of a child. Public defenders for the Davidsons said they had finally received long-awaited medical evaluations for their clients within the last week, and requested that a final pre-trial date be set for May 3.

“I got his evaluation Friday afternoon so I haven’t been able to go over there (to the county jail) to go over that with Mr. Davidson,” public defender Victoria Chuffo said in court Monday.

Courtney Transier, court-appointed counsel for Courtny Davidson, confirmed she had begun to review the medical evaluation with her client.

Both Courtny and James Davidson have been in custody on a $250,000 bond since their arrest last August on the charges stemming from Rutherford’s death. The pair face one count of involuntary manslaughter, a Class 2 felony that carries up to 14 years in prison, and two counts of endangering the life or health of a child, a Class 3 felony that can carry up to 10 years.

Kendall County Sheriff’s detectives had described the Davidson home at 100 block of Boulder Hill Pass as uninhabitable at the time of Rutherford’s death. An autopsy and toxicology report completed by Coroner Jacquie Purcell in August ruled Rutherford’s death a homicide caused by an overdose on olanzapine, a medication used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder in adolescents and adults.

Courtny Davidson is diagnosed as bipolar and authorities found approximately ten different types of medication in the Boulder Hill home, according to court documents.

Kendall County Judge Robert Pilmer will set a trial date for the Davidsons at the final pre-trial hearing May 3.