The Murders at Starved Rock

The Story of Starved Rock

Starved Rock state park is located along the Illinois River in LaSalle County, Illinois.  It was made Illinois’ second state park in 1911.  The park has 18 canyons with more than 13 miles of trails with access to waterfalls, sandstone overhangs and overlooks.  

Starved Rock got its name according to a Native American legend dating back to the 1760’s.  Chief Pontiac of the Ottawa tribe had been killed by a Peoria brave while attending a tribal council in Southern Illinois.  The Peoria were a sub-tribe of the Illinois Confederation.  The legend says that during one of the battles that took place to avenge the Chief’s death, a band of the Illinois tribe was under attack by a band of the Potawatomi (allies of the Ottawa) and took refuge at the top of a 125-foot sandstone butte. The Illinois people had very little food with them and could only get water by lowering baskets tied to vines into the Illinois River that sat 130 feet below them.  The Potawatomi people stayed at the foot of the rock and camped in formation.  By doing so, the members of the Illinois tribe were unable to retrieve food and they started to slowly starve to death and the name Starved Rock came to be. 

The Victims

Frances “Frankie” Murphy was born on July 12, 1912 in Illinois to John and Josephine Caddy.  She married Robert Ward Murphy on January 16, 1937 in Moline, Illinois and they had four children.  Her husband was the Vice President and general counsel for the Borg-Warner Company.  Lilian Oetting was born on September 7, 1909 in Northern Ireland and married George Oetting of Illinois.  George was an official at the Illinois Bell Telephone Company and the couple had three children.  Mildred Monika Emma Shuppert Lindquist was born on September 10, 1906.  She was married to Robert Lindquist who was the Vice President of Chicago’s Harris Trust and Savings Bank.  The couple had two children.  All three couples lived in a Chicago suburb.  

Frances, Lillian and Mildred were all members and community leaders of Riverside’s Presbyterian Church.  After church on Sunday, March 13, 1960, the three women decided to take a 3-day winter trip together and made sure to go grocery shopping for their families that day.  Lillian was especially excited for the trip as she had been nursing her husband back to health for quite some time after a heart attack.  

What Happened at Starved Rock?

The three women headed out in Frankie’s Ford station wagon to begin the two hour drive to Starved Rock.  The girls were looking forward to a peaceful girls’ trip.  Mildred brought along her copy of A Field Guide to the Birds, Lillian brought a novel – The Lincoln Lords and they all had their knitting as well as a pair of binoculars to share and a 35mm camera.  

The women checked in at the Starved Rock Lodge and brought their luggage to their rooms.  They had two adjoining rooms with Lillian staying in room 109 and Mildred and Frankie in room 110.  They freshened up after their drive and headed to the lodge’s dining room for lunch.  After lunch, they headed out for a 1.2 mile walk into the St. Louis Canyon, which is one of the park’s main attractions.  

Lillian’s husband, George, had been expecting a phone call from his wife that night as she had promised to call and check on him, but the call never came.  Finally, George decided to call the Lodge to try to reach her through the switchboard operator, but he got no answer from her room.  He tried calling again on Tuesday, but again, couldn’t get a hold of her.  

After several attempts to get in touch with Lillian, George called Frances’s husband, Robert.  Robert couldn’t get in touch with his wife either and he called Robert Lindquist to see if he had any success in reaching his wife, Mildred.  All three men hadn’t been able to get in touch with their wives.  After the attempts to call their wives, the police were called.  The women’s rooms were checked and it was found that none of their bags had been unpacked.  There had been a snowstorm on Tuesday and Frankie’s car had no signs of any snow being cleared off or of being driven. 

On Wednesday morning, a search party was formed at the park and just a few hours into the search, the women’s bodies were found bloodied and beaten inside a cave in St. Louis Canyon.  All three women had been severely beaten in the head and were placed in the cave with their skirts pulled up around their necks, their legs spread apart and their undergarments removed.  Frances and Lillian’s wrists were both tied with twine. 

The Illinois State Police quickly took over the case and the Illinois State’s Attorney, Harland Warren, was called to the scene.  In an interview, Warren said that at the time, he had no education in solving crimes.  When he got to the scene, the state police were using flamethrowers to melt the snow looking for evidence.  Warren was also looking for evidence at the scene and he found a tree limb that was approximately 3 feet long and 4 inches thick which was determined to be the murder weapon.  The binoculars that the women brought were also said to have been used as a weapon. 

The police also found the camera that they brought and when they developed the photos, they saw what they believed to be a man lurking in the background of the photos.  It was found later, though, that it was a double negative and they didn’t have anything to work with from the photos.  Investigators saw no apparent motive for robbery at the scene as none of the women’s watches or jewelry were taken. 

An autopsy concluded that the women were not sexually assaulted and that they had died from skull fractures and brain damage from the severe beating.  The estimated time of death was 2:30 or 3:00pm.  

The Investigation

As the investigation began, everyone who worked at the Starved Rock Lodge was interviewed, including Chester Weger,  a 21-year-old dishwasher in the kitchen.  During his initial interviews, he was polygraphed and had passed each test administered.  Weger’s alibi was that he had been in a room alone in the Lodge writing a letter to a girl.  Weger’s coworkers were interviewed as well and said that he came into work the day following the murders with scratches on his face.   Nick Spiros was the owner of the Lodge and his son, George Spiros, was always employed there and both were looked into initially as well.  

Initially none of the Lodge employees were brought in, but Chester Weger had been an original suspect.  Other theories the Illinois State Police had were that the mafia was involved or that it was a madman who had recently escaped from a mental institution nearby.  

All three of the husbands banded together to put up $30,000 as a reward and Nick Spiros added $5,000 to the reward.  Despite this, there were no arrests made for months following the murders, but the investigation continued on.  During the investigation, the residents of LaSalle County were scared that the murderer was still on the loose and were double and triple locking their doors.  

Harland Warren, the State’s Attorney, had been accused of bungling evidence by his opposition for the next term in office, so he kept working on finding an answer to who had killed the women.  As Warren worked through the evidence, he decided to count the strands on the twine that had been used to tie Frances’ and Lillian’s wrists.  He found that there were 32 strands on that rope.  He then went back to the Lodge to search the kitchen and found some cord and compared it to the twine from the scene.   He also counted 32 strands on that cord.  Investigators then discovered that the cord in the kitchen belonged to Weger and he had been known to carry that type of rope with him.  

Chester Weger Background

Chester Weger was born on March 3, 1939 and was a veteran with the nickname of Rocky.  He had a wife and two children at home and was working at the Lodge instead of working with his father in the house painting business.  There were rumors that Weger sexually assaulted his wife and he had a juvenile record of rape/sexual assault.  

When Weger was twelve, he had been charged with the rape of an 8-year-old girl who had been walking home with Weger’s younger sister, Mary.  Mary and the girl had been walking home and split off on their respective paths.  According to Weger, he found the girl after she was raped and helped her get dressed and carried her home.  He was arrested, but he claims that the father of the girl asked the police to let him go.  **More on this later, so keep that tidbit noodling in your noodle.**

Investigation / Arrest of Chester Weger

After Harland Warren discovered the matching twine in the kitchen at the Lodge, Deputy William Dummett drove Chester to Chicago for questioning and another polygraph test.  Weger had agreed to go to Chicago, but had said he wasn’t going to take the polygraph without a lawyer present.  However, the test was administered anyway.  In an interview decades later, Weger says that he purposely threw off the test because he had asked to take the test with an attorney present.  Weger was interrogated by both Deputy Dummett and Deputy Wayne Hess.  After failing the test, Deputy Dummett attempted to persuade Weger to confess to the murders, but Weger maintained his innocence. 

On the drive back from Chicago, Deputy Dummett allegedly repeatedly threatened Weger that if he didn’t sign a confession he would be sentenced to the electric chair.  Weger says that Deputy Dummett told him that he was going to “ride the thunderbolt” and threatened him the entire drive back from Chicago.  Weger also claims that he was beaten by Deputy Eutsey who was also there for the interrogation.  

After the interrogation in September, the State Police assigned a team of troopers to do surveillance on Chester and he was being followed by the police.  He was under constant surveillance for a month.  

On November 16, 1960, Chester Weger was picked up by LaSalle County authorities to again be questioned.  He maintained his innocence throughout the interrogation.  After several hours of interrogation and alleged threats, Weger confessed to the murders of Frances Murphy, Lillian Oetting and Mildred Lindquist.  The only thing tying Weger to the crimes at this point, though, was his confession, as none of the physical evidence pointed to Weger with exception of the theory that he used similar twine and it being found in the kitchen where he worked. 

The day after Chester Weger signed the confession, he recanted and claimed that the police had threatened his life and his confession was coerced.  He also stated that there wasn’t a lawyer present when he signed the confession and he felt like signing it was the only way to save his life.  

The Other Robbery & Rape

In 1959, a robbery and rape occurred at Matthiessen Park which is located next to Starved Rock State Park.  Matthiessen Park is also located close to Weger’s home.  One night, a young girl and her boyfriend were walking through the park when a man pulled out a rifle and made the girl tie her boyfriend’s hands with twine.  He then raped the young woman and she said that he rolled a bullet in his mouth the whole time.  Weger was put in a line up and both the girl and her boyfriend ID’d him as the person who attacked them.  

When Weger was confronted about the robbery and rape, he reportedly asked for his mother and she said to him, “Son, now tell the truth,” and then he confessed to this crime as well. 

The Reenactment

The morning after his confession, Chester Weger was brought to St. Louis Canyon at Starved Rock Park to reenact the murders and explain to several reporters what had happened.  He told the reporters that he went to grab the purse of one of the ladies, but realized that it was a camera.  He said that Mrs. Murphy hit him with the binoculars so he grabbed the frozen tree branch he saw and began beating the women with it.  He said that he took their clothes off to make it appear that it was a rape, but his motive was actually robbery. 

The Trial

Chester’s trial began in February of 1961.  At the trial, the jury heard Weger’s confession and were presented with the evidence found at the scene.  In his confession, Weger stated that he had heard and seen a red airplane flying over the park so he moved the bodies into the cave.  The pilot of the red airplane confirmed that he had flown over Starved Rock park on the day of the murders.  Chester’s suede jacket was also entered into evidence and discussed at the trial.  It had been found that there was blood spatter on his jacket and it was said to be human blood.  Weger’s coworkers stated in their interviews that he had come into work the day after the murders with scratches on his face, but he said that he had cut himself shaving.  

After hearing the confession and seeing the evidence, the jury found Chester Weger guilty and he was sentenced to life in prison.  The prosecution was seeking the death penalty, but the jury refused to impose it.  The signed confession was what led the jury to find Weger guilty, but they couldn’t justify the death penalty based on the evidence. 

Theories About Chester’s Innocence

Chester Weger has maintained his innocence since he recanted his confession in 1960.  There are many people who believe he’s guilty and there are many people who believe he’s innocent.  There was a “Committee to Free Weger” formed with three members – Dave Marsh, Deedra Fox and Bob Petre.  These three individuals have strong feelings that Chester is innocent and believe that he was set up.  They believe that George Spiros was involved and that because it was an election year, Harland Warren wanted to be known as the person who solved the Starved Rock murders before leaving office if not re-elected.  He lost the election, but is known as the person who solved the case despite not trying it in court. 

Along with the committee, Chester Weger’s appeals attorney from the early 2000’s and his current attorney believe he is innocent.  In 2001, Donna Kelly became Chester’s appeals attorney and filed a clemency petition.  At the clemency hearing in 2005, Donna stated that the confession had been involuntary and was only given because of physical and psychological abuse.  In Weger’s original trial in 1961, Deputy Dummett testified that he never threatened Weger about riding a thunderbolt, however, Craig Armstrong, an assistant state’s attorney, who was also in the vehicle with Dummett and Weger, testified that he did threaten Weger at least five times.  It has also been said that Deputy Dummett was putting a gun on Weger during the interrogation and hitting him.  Chester has also stated that the night of the arrest, Deputies Dummett and Hess had already had a confession written out that was read to him 10-15 times. 

Another argument for Weger’s innocence is that the physical evidence doesn’t match his confession.  There were two different hair samples found at the crime scene which suggests two killers.  In the confession, Weger said that the motive was robbery, however, nothing was taken from the women.  They had all of their jewelry and belongings.  

The red airplane that was seen flying over the park the day of the murder is another point of contention.  Deputy Dummett was a member of Ottawa’s Airman Club where the airplane is housed and it is possible that he has flown that plane before.  There is an affidavit from Homer Charbonneau, the pilot of the red plane, stating that he did fly the plane over the park that day.  It is speculated that Deputy Dummett knew the plane had been flown prior to the confession and had told Chester.  

Chester’s buckskin jacket has also been in question.  It was said in court that the blood found on the jacket was human, but that determination wasn’t made until September of 1960.  Prior to September, it had been determined to be either raccoon or squirrel blood, which would make sense, because Chester hunted both.  

Yet another argument for his innocence is a story told by Sandra Bland, a friend of the Weger family.  She said that she was fifteen at the time of the trial and was called over to a black car one night.  She was called over by Stanley Tucker, Chester’s best friend, and his girlfriend.  Stanley told Sandra that he testified in court and lied on the stand because “they” threatened him and he didn’t want to spend the rest of his life in prison.  Sandra also says that Stanley told her that Chester wasn’t involved and that it was him and George Spiros.  Stanley told her that if the police had searched his car, they would have found evidence in his trunk.  Donna Kelly, the appeals attorney, believes that two people were involved in the murder – one of them being Stanley Tucker.  The other, George Spiros.  Donna gave these names to the state’s attorney and just days later, George Spiros was dead.  By this time, Stanley Tucker had already passed.  On May 2, 2005, George Spiros left groceries on his doorstep, went into his house and killed himself and his dog.  He was found naked from the waist down after grocery shopping for the week.  

George Spiros had told the police in an interview that he had seen Chester Weger and Stanley Tucker talking to the women at the park the day of the murders.  However, Chester’s mom was a maid for the Spiros family and had bloody clothes in George’s closet and told the police about it.  By the time the police went to look into it, the clothes were gone.  Another thing that people believe points to George Spiros is that he was sent to Greece just months after the murders. 

Another theory about the murders is that Smokey Wrona was one of the killers.  Alice Wrona, Smokey’s sister, said that he was one of the killers and former state’s attorney, Brian Towne, said that Smokey Wrona was responsible for bad things that happened in town.  It has been estimated that he killed thirteen people.  According to Alice, the women’s husbands were behind it and Smokey got $25,000 for the murder. 

A couple things to note: Bill Dummett took the log the three women were brutally beaten and killed with and put it on his mantel as a trophy.  Also, Harland Warren, Bill Dummett and Wayne Hess split the reward money for solving the case.  

Chester’s Conflicting Alibis & Juvenile Crimes

There are also things that point to Chester being guilty.  In Chester’s original interview, what was used in court was that he was in the breakroom alone writing a letter to a girl.  However, in 2003 at the clemency hearing, his alibi changed.  He said that he was in Oglesby with Stanley Tucker and he got a haircut at Ben Franklin’s Barbershop.  After the haircut, he went to work.  There is a signed affidavit by Ben Franklin stating that Weger was at the barbershop.  Weger says that his trial attorney in 1961, John McNamara, called him to the stand and he had memory failure so he changed his story. 

Earlier we talked about the rape of an 8-year-old girl and that Chester said that he didn’t do it but helped her get dressed and walked her home.  What actually happened according to a report is that Chester grabbed her and raped her.  There was a sign of penetration and there was blood.  Chester’s parents noticed that Chester had blood all over his pants and when asked about it, he said, “I killed a snake.”  The police questioned him and he then confessed. 

Where Are We Now?

Throughout the years that Chester Weger was in prison, he went up for parole and was denied 23 times.  At his 24th parole hearing in November of 2019, Weger was granted parole in a 9-4 vote.  Many people believe that he was finally granted parole because Anthony Ruccuglia, the prosecutor who tried the case in 1960, had passed away and was not there to argue for him to stay in prison.  In February of 2020, right before the pandemic, Chester Weger was released after spending 60 years in prison.  He was Illinois’ longest serving prisoner.  

Andy Hale now represents Chester Weger and is doing everything he can to clear his name.  There was still some evidence that he sent to be tested for DNA in 2021 and got results back in 2022.  He sent in hairs that were found on the glove of Mrs. Murphy’s left index finger – it is noted that the tip of this finger was cut off post-mortem, twine and cigarette butts.  The only piece of evidence that had enough genetic material to test was the hair and it was found that it belongs to a male profile that is not Chester Weger.  They are hoping to find DNA in CODIS that matches.

He has also poured over reports and paperwork in regard to the case and found a police report that he calls “the smoking gun” in the case.  There is a two page police report from April 20, 1960 from a woman named Lois Zelensek.  Zelensek was a phone operator and overheard a conversation when she went to advise that their time was up on March 21, 1960.  She heard the man calling from Aurora (a city between Chicago and LaSalle) talking about the write-up in the paper about the murders.  He said that the kid had blood stained overalls in the trunk of his car and was getting anxious on what to do with them and was afraid he would get caught.  The man on the LaSalle line told him that he should get rid of the overalls and burn them.  What this phone call does is show that there were three people involved in the case.  

Andy Hale has a podcast – The Starved Rock Murders with Andy Hale and a listener got in touch with him and told him that her grandfather was in the mob.  She said that in a deathbed confession, he told her that he selected the three men to kill the women because one of their husbands wanted his wife dead.  She said that her grandfather was upset that the wrong man was in jail.  According to Hale, he spoke face-to-face with her and she was sobbing and shaking leading him to 100% believing her story.  There is also a man who was friends with Smokey Wrona who said that Smokey told him that the murders were a mob hit.  

In October of 2022, Andy Hale submitted all of their evidence to the state’s attorney with the request that Chester Weger’s conviction be vacated.  In December of 2022, they declined to vacate due to the evidence being considered hearsay and unverified.  They also said that there was not enough evidence to vacate the conviction.  

Andy Hale is continuing to work on the case and has no intentions of giving up.  He has filed a petition in court for post-conviction relief in Illinois.  When it goes to court, they are planning on submitting the same evidence as before along with expert witnesses and forensic evidence.  Once it goes to court, the state’s attorney will have a chance to oppose and a judge will ultimately decide.  

There is quite a bit more on this case and it would take so many episodes to get through everything if we decided to go through with a fine tooth comb.  The HBO documentary and Andy Hale’s podcast really dive in.