A Lockport man charged with the first-degree murder of his wife is appealing the denial of his pretrial release, which was denied several times by a Will County judge.

Since April 17, Eric Strasser, 62, has been in the Will County jail on a charge of the first-degree murder of his wife, Rosy Strasser, 51, who died in a fatal shooting on May 1, 2024, in Lockport.

The two were estranged and going through divorce before the incident.

Prosecutors said Rosy Strasser had been dead for at least three hours before her husband called 911 to report an “accidental shooting” and then hung up on a police dispatcher.

Prosecutors alleged Eric Strasser was calling other people before dialing 911 to figure out how to cover up his wife’s murder.

Will County Judge Amy Christiansen denied Eric Strasser’s pretrial release three times under the pretrial provision of the SAFE-T Act.

Strasser’s attorney is Dave Carlson, who was critical of the law while serving as a Will County judge. Carlson has filed an appeal of his client’s detention with the 3rd District Appellate Court in Ottawa.

While on the bench, Carlson said the the SAFE-T Act “eviscerated the judiciary when it comes to making decisions about people.” His decision in 2024 to allow the pretrial release of a former Joliet Outlaws member charged with murder was overturned by another judge.

Appealing pretrial detention

The pretrial provision of the SAFE-T Act eliminated cash bail in 2023.

But judges can hold defendants in jail if they are charged with a certain offenses, such as murder, and if they find there are no conditions that can mitigate the risks of the defendant’s pretrial release.

The 3rd District Appellate Court in Ottawa may make a decision on Strasser’s appeal of Christiansen’s ruling some time early next year.

If the appellate court rules in Strasser’s favor and he’s released, he would join at least four other defendants in Will County who’ve been on pretrial release in first-degree murder cases.

Three of those defendants were released under the cash bail system, while the fourth has been on release under the SAFE-T Act.

Prosecutors’ case

Prosecutors argued Strasser poses a danger to the community because he allegedly killed his wife instead of letting their divorce case proceed in court, according to transcript of the Oct. 1 detention hearing filed in the case.

“[Strasser] decides to take conflict into his own hands and to a loved one, not a random individual, to someone that he has feelings for. He shoots her in the head as she sits on the toilet. That is the danger that this man presents to the community, whether it is the loved one or the community at large,” said Will County Assistant State’s Attorney Mark Shlifka.

Shlifka said when someone “demonstrates that type of conflict resolution,” they can’t be trusted with electronic monitoring.

Carlson said Strasser would have zero on his pretrial risk assessment if not for a driving under the influence offense from 1983. Other than that, Carlson said Strasser has led a “law-abiding life” and he was honorably discharged from the U.S. Marine Corps.

Carlson said police had recovered numerous guns from Strasser’s possession during the investigation, with the exception of one firearm that Strasser himself provided to the police when he “realized he wasn’t supposed to have firearms.”

“I think that is absolutely important because that shows that he is able to comply with any sort of conditions or rules that the court would impose,” Carlson said.

Judge denies jail release

Carlson contended there were no public safety concerns from police or prosecutors regarding his client during the roughly yearlong investigation of his wife’s death.

Shlifka responded that prosecutors don’t simply charge people because they think they are a danger to society.

“We took our time. And because we took our time is not because we think he is any less of a danger. Because we took our time is not that we didn’t think he committed this offense. We took our time because that is our oath and that is our obligation,” Shlifka said.

Christiansen ruled on Oct. 1 that Strasser’s pretrial release posed as a danger to others because he allegedly killed his wife.

She said if Strasser could have “allegedly killed his wife in the manner and fashion” that he’s “alleged to have done,” to someone he loved enough to marry, then there is “no condition or conditions that can secure the community at large from that continued threat.”

Defense asks judge to reconsider

At an Oct. 23 court hearing, Carlson again emphasized to Christiansen that Strasser was “walking freely” during the police investigation and he was not a “danger to anybody” and there were no concerns during that time, according to court transcript filed in the case.

Carlson said he knows Shlifka doesn’t take the “blanket position” that first-degree murder is an “automatic detainable offense.” But Carlson said the “words don’t necessarily ring true.”

In response, Shlifka said the state’s attorney’s office has “unsolved murders” that involve “very dangerous people” and “individuals who have multiple unsolved murders.”

“Do we wish we could just charge them and do we wish that they were removed from society? Yes, but we charge when we have a belief of a reasonable likelihood to secure a conviction. We don’t simply charge based on a danger to the community,” Shlifka said.

Christiansen once again found Strasser’s pretrial release posed a danger to others and no condition such as electronic monitoring could mitigate that risk.