Opinion ID: 2180603
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: facts

Text: Late in the evening of September 13, 1992, police found the body of the victim, Louis Vargas, behind a building at 2808 West North Avenue in Chicago. Vargas' face and head had been badly beaten with what police believed to be a blunt object. His body was found between the rear wall of the building and a large truck, lying face down in a pool of blood on top of several cardboard boxes. Police determined that Vargas had died fairly recently, as his head was still bleeding when they arrived on the scene. Vargas' shoes were missing, and one of his pants' pockets was bloody and turned inside out. No identifiable fingerprints or other physical evidence was found at the murder scene. Police searched the vicinity of the crime scene, including nearby Dumpsters and garbage cans, but did not find a murder weapon. The day after Vargas' body was found, the police interviewed several people in the area. Although no witnesses to Vargas' beating were located, Anthony Laboy told police that he had seen Vargas in Humboldt Park the previous day. Laboy was sitting on a bench drinking a beer around 6:30 p.m. when he saw Vargas and another man, known only to Laboy as Papo, about 25 feet away. According to Laboy, the two were arguing over money to buy liquor. Laboy further told police that, in the course of the argument, Papo took out a long cylindrical object that looked liked a screwdriver or an ice pick. Papo turned toward Vargas, who grabbed the object and threw it to the ground. Vargas then grabbed Papo's walking cane and threw it to the ground. Next, Vargas slammed Papo to the ground. After this incident, Vargas and Papo walked away with several other men. According to Laboy, the argument had ended, and everything looked to be straightened out. Laboy did not see Vargas or Papo the rest of the night. Based on Laboy's information, police searched Humboldt park for Papo, later identified as defendant, Hector Nieves, to question him in connection with Vargas' murder. Police were unable to locate defendant, however, and the murder went unsolved for more than a year and a half. On May 20, 1994, New York City officials contacted the Chicago State's Attorney's office regarding a man who surrendered to New York police in connection with a murder in Central Park and who also wished to make a statement regarding a murder in Chicago. Cook County Assistant State's Attorney John Muldoon, Chicago police detective Louis Rabbit, and a court stenographer traveled that same day to New York City to meet with the man, who identified himself as Hector Nieves. After Muldoon and Rabbit advised defendant of his rights, defendant spoke privately with them for about 20 minutes. At the conclusion of this conversation, defendant agreed to give a court-reported statement. After again being advised of his rights, including the right to remain silent and the right to counsel, defendant stated that he was with Vargas in Humboldt Park during the afternoon of September 13, 1992. The two began arguing when defendant refused to give Vargas a dollar to buy wine. Vargas became very upset and threw defendant's walking cane, which defendant needed due to a recent leg surgery. Defendant stated that he got angry at Vargas for taking his cane and decided to retaliate. He formed a plan to wait for Vargas to go to sleep and then kill him. Defendant further stated that, later that night, he went to Vargas' usual sleeping place behind a restaurant at the intersection of North Avenue and California Street. Defendant knew that there was always a truck parked in the rear alley and that Vargas always slept underneath this truck. After finding a pipe in the alley, defendant climbed into the back of the truck and waited for Vargas. Vargas arrived around 9:30 or 10 p.m. Defendant waited approximately 15 minutes to be sure that Vargas was sound asleep, and then climbed out of the truck. He struck Vargas on the head with the pipe between 10 and 15 times, killing him. Defendant stated that he then left the scene, throwing the pipe into a back yard about three houses away. The case proceeded to trial in June 1997. In addition to Alexander Laboy and John Muldoon, several Chicago police personnel who worked on the case testified for the prosecution. Dr. Edmond Donoghue, chief medical examiner for Cook County, testified as to the cause of Vargas' death. Dr. Robert Kirschner, who had performed the autopsy on Vargas' body, had since retired and was out of the country. Dr. Donoghue reviewed Dr. Kirschner's file and testified as an expert in forensic pathology. Dr. Donoghue concluded that Vargas died from severe injuries to the skull and brain consistent with being beaten about the head with a pipe. According to Dr. Donoghue, Vargas had been struck at least eight times in a beating that would have killed anyone. No witnesses testified on behalf of the defense, which rested at the close of the prosecution's case in chief. The jury then found defendant guilty of first degree murder. At the death penalty eligibility hearing, New York City police detective Eugene Heghmann and New York Assistant District Attorney Cynthia Sippnick both testified regarding defendant's involvement in the June 1993 death of Santos Bermudez. Sippnick further testified that defendant subsequently pleaded guilty in New York to first degree manslaughter in connection with Bermudez's killing, and a certified copy of that conviction was entered into evidence. At the close of Sippnick's testimony, the trial court ruled, outside the presence of the jury, that the New York first degree manslaughter statute was substantially similar to the Illinois first degree murder statute. The jury then returned a verdict unanimously finding defendant eligible for the death penalty for having been convicted of murdering two or more individuals. See 720 ILCS 5/9-1(b)(3) (West 1996). At the aggravation-mitigation phase of the death penalty hearing, the prosecution introduced evidence of defendant's lengthy criminal history and numerous prison disciplinary infractions. The jury also heard evidence linking defendant to two additional murders, that of Lonnie Jackson in 1991 and of Rafeal Cuevas in 1992, to which defendant had confessed in separate court-reported statements made at the same time as his statement regarding the Vargas murder. In mitigation, defendant presented testimonial evidence of his good behavior while held at the Cook County jail. Defendant's brother also offered testimony of defendant's abusive childhood. In addition, two licensed clinical psychologists testified as to defendant's low intelligence and severe personality disturbance. After hearing all the factors in aggravation and mitigation, the jury unanimously found that there were no mitigating circumstances sufficient to preclude the imposition of the death penalty. The trial court then sentenced defendant to death.