Lockport man charged with 2024 murder of wife to stay in jail

A Lockport man charged with the 2024 first-degree murder of his wife will remain in Will County jail as he awaits trial.

On Monday, Judge Amy Christiansen granted a request from prosecutors to keep Eric Strasser, 62, in jail after finding he posed a real and present threat to the community under the SAFE-T Act.

Strasser stands charged with the May 1, 2024, fatal shooting of his wife, Rosy Strasser, 51, and he was further accused by prosecutors of attempting to cover up the crime.

Will County Assistant State’s Attorney Jon Sakellaropoulos told Christiansen there was evidence that Rosy Strasser had been dead for at least three hours before Eric Strasser called 911 to report an “accidental shooting.”

He said Eric Strasser then hung up the phone on the police dispatcher.

Sakellaropoulos said there was no evidence to support Eric Strasser’s claim because there was no evidence of close-range firing. Sakellaropoulos said Rosy Strasser’s gunshot wound was on the left side of her head and she is right-handed.

Sakellaropoulos said police uncovered evidence that Eric Strasser made multiple phone calls at his home where he lived with his wife on the night of the incident. One of those calls was to his divorce lawyer, he said.

Sakellaropoulos said a few of those calls were to Rosy Strasser and he left her a voicemail asking if she was coming home even though her vehicle was in the driveway. He said Eric Strasser knew she was home that night.

Sakellaropoulos said there are no conditions to mitigate the danger of Eric Strasser’s pretrial release. He contended if Eric Strasser is willing to kill his own wife, then he poses a danger to the community.

“He went so far as to cover up the events that happened that night,” Sakellaropoulos said.

Eric Strasser’s attorney, Dave Carlson, who made his aversions to the SAFE-T Act known while he was on the bench, once again raised issues with the law as he argued for his client’s pretrial release.

Carlson called detention hearings under the SAFE-T Act a “one-sided proceeding.” He said discovery in the case is still ongoing and there were issues with providing Christiansen a “full and accurate picture.”

Carlson said the state had been gathering evidence against Eric Strasser for about a year before filing the first-degree murder charges and at no point did his client attempt to flee the jurisdiction.

Carlson said there was no concern about his client’s danger to society from either prosecutors or police during the almost yearlong investigation.

He argued prosecutors were only saying Eric Strasser is a danger.

“That’s not enough. That’s simply not enough,” Carlson said.

Carlson argued prosecutors did not meet their burden (under the clear and convincing evidence standard) that there were no conditions that could mitigate the risks of his client’s pretrial release.

The clear and convincing evidence standard is a “medium level” burden of proof that requires a judge or jury to find the evidence is “highly probable,” according to the Cornell Law School’s Legal Information Institute.

Carlson suggested Eric Strasser could be released on electronic monitoring.

However, Sakellaropoulos argued Eric Strasser is a threat to witness in the case considering the lengths he went to cover up the murder.

He also said police confiscated numerous firearms at his home.

“If that’s the hangup, there are no firearms,” Carlson said in response, by noting his client no longer had those guns in his possession.