Ogle County judge hears arguments for and against allowing crime scene photos in Byron double-murder trial

OREGON — An Ogle County judge will decide next month how many crime scene photos will be seen by jurors in the trial of a Stillman Valley man charged with killing his ex-wife in 2016 and setting her Byron home on fire, also killing their 3-year-old son.

Duane Meyer, 43, is charged with four counts of first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated arson and one count of concealment of a homicidal death in connection with an Oct. 19, 2016, Byron house fire in which his ex-wife, Margaret “Maggie” (Rosko) Meyer, 31, was found dead.

The couple’s 3-year-old son, Amos Meyer, who also was home at the time of the fire, was later pronounced dead at a Rockford hospital.

Meyer has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges and has been held in the Ogle County Jail since his arrest on Oct. 9, 2019.

On Friday, June 27, during a motion in limine hearing, Meyer’s attorney, Christopher DeRango of Rockford, and Assistant Ogle County State’s Attorney Matthew Leisten argued for and against allowing jurors to see certain autopsy and crime scene photos.

The purpose of a motion in limine hearing (Latin for “on the threshold”) is to determine whether certain evidence can be presented to a jury. Those motions are commonly entered and argued before a trial begins in order for the judge to determine whether certain items or statements can be allowed as evidence and presented to jurors.

Leisten argued that photos taken by investigators should be allowed as evidence for jurors to see. Some of the photos described by Leisten included Maggie’s burned body lying on a sofa in her living room and the outline of the toddler’s body on the mattress in his crib.

“There was extensive damage,” Leisten said, referring to photos taken of the living room. “The different angles are important for our arson experts to show how the fire began and how it affected her body. It is important for the jury to see the scene.”

DeRango said one photo would suffice.

“The only value is to shock the jury,” DeRango said, arguing that Maggie’s body could be cropped out of any additional photos of the living room.

Leisten said photos of the toddler’s bedroom show that the fire did not start there and that he died of acute carbon dioxide poisoning before being removed from the room.

“Damage there is far less extensive,” said Leisten. “It’s important for the jury to see his silhouette in the crib.”

DeRango said using multiple photos of the same subject matter was meant to “elicit” sympathy for the toddler.

Leisten said photos of Maggie’s autopsies were needed to show that she died prior to the fire and had suffered numerous injuries before dying. He said her body was “heavily charred” with no soot found in her trachea or lungs.

And, Leisten said, prosecution experts would also testify that she suffered a hemorrhage at the base of a skull and had other injuries to her body before she died.

“We believe she was deceased before the fire,” Leisten. “She was likely attacked and suffered injuries before the fire.”

Leisten also said a photo of a rock with blood on it, found outside the home, should also be allowed as evidence, since DNA testing had determined the blood was Maggie’s.

DeRango argued against multiple autopsy photos, again stating that one photo would suffice.

“They [prosecutors] should be directed to choose one or the other,” he said, adding that numerous photos serve no purpose other than to “shock” jurors and “prejudice” them against his client.

Leisten said it is important for jurors to have good visuals to refer to as doctors are testifying.

“This is evidence we need to provide,” said Leisten.

Ogle County Judge John “Ben” Roe will rule on the motions at 9 a.m. Aug. 5. He remanded Meyer to the Ogle County Jail.

The trial, which is expected to take one month, is set to begin Jan. 5, 2026. It had been originally scheduled for February, but was delayed on a defense motion made by DeRango, who cited a heavy caseload as the reason for a continuance.

In previous hearings, DeRango and prosecutors have said numerous cellphone records and data will also be part of the evidence presented.

Maggie was a teacher at the Chana Education Center at the time of her death. She filed for divorce in 2014, and court records show the divorce was finalized in September 2016.

Prosecutors have argued that their evidence will show Meyer planned to end Maggie’s life.

The defense has argued that text messages sent by Meyer before the deaths were only part of a “contentious” divorce and not indicative of anything nefarious. Prosecutors disagree.