An appellate court upheld the SAFE-T Act detention of a Lockport man charged with the 2024 murder of his wife, which means the man will remain in jail as he awaits trial.

On Feb. 9, the 3rd District Appellate Court in Ottawa upheld a ruling from Will County Judge Amy Christiansen to keep Eric Strasser, 63, in jail on charge of the first-degree murder of Rosy Strasser, 51.

Another pretrial hearing in the murder case is set for March 4.

Rosy Strasser was found dead from a gunshot wound on May 1, 2024 inside of a bathroom at a residence. Eric Strasser had called 911, reported an “accidental shooting” and hung up on a dispatcher without further explanation, prosecutors said.

A Lockport Police Department investigation led to charges against Eric Strasser on April 21, 2025.

The appellate order supporting Christiansen’s denial of pretrial release was delivered by Appellate Justice Matthew Bertani.

Appellate Justices William Holdridge and Linda Davenport concurred with the order.

“We find that the state met its burden of proving that the defendant posed a threat to the community and there were no conditions to mitigate that threat. Defendant allegedly went out consuming alcoholic beverages, came home and shot his wife, and then tried to cover it up,” according to Bertani’s court order.

The court order acknowledged Strasser has no violent criminal history and everyone charged with an offense is eligible for pretrial release, which can be denied in certain situations.

But Bertani’s order cited a 2024 appellate case from the 4th District Appellate Court in Springfield called People v. Richard Romine.

In that case, Appellate Justice Eugene Doherty found the evidence of a defendant’s charged conduct, even if it took place on a “single occasion,” may reflect such a departure from the “basic expectations of civli society” that it becomes “difficult to predict” the defendant’s compliance with court orders.