A judge found a Michigan man charged with his wife’s 1988 murder in Will County posed no flight risk and there are conditions that can mitigate the risks of his jail release.

On Tuesday, Judge Art Smigielski denied a petition from Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow’s Office to keep Gilbert Bernal, 82, in jail as he awaits trial for a second time over a charge of the 1988 murder of his wife, Joan Bernal, 34.

The Bernals once lived in Joliet Township. Joan Bernal went missing in 1988 and her body has never been found.

Sarita Woerheide, the daughter of Joan and Gilbert Bernal, was visibly upset as Smigielski delivered his ruling. Woerheide had spoken against her father’s pretrial release in court on Feb. 4.

Woerheide compared her father to the character of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. She said he has a pattern of violence and intimidation that is ongoing.

Woerheide declined to speak with reporters after Tuesday’s court hearing.

Smigielski found there was no flight risk for Gilbert Bernal, who has continued to reside in the United States since Glasgow dropped the murder case in 1994.

Although Smigielski made it clear that sheriff’s deputies cannot release Bernal from jail until his passport has been confiscated.

Smigielski ordered Bernal to submit to electronic monitoring and reside in Illinois under home confinement.

There has been at least one other defendant who’s been on pretrial release in a murder case in Will County since 2024. Three other murder defendants in Will County have been on cash bail release for years, including since 2018 in one case.

Smigielski said it is not his job to be an “activist” judge or to “legislate from the bench.”

He said he has to abide by the pretrial provision of the SAFE-T Act, which the Illinois Supreme Court deemed constitutional in 2023.

The law grants the presumption of pretrial release for all defendants unless a judge finds they are charged with certain offenses and no conditions can mitigate their flight risk or the danger they may pose to others.

Smigielski found Bernal has “insignificant” criminal history, which includes a misdemeanor and traffic case.

Smigielski found Bernal had “significant” social history involving violence between the 1970s and early 2000s. But he noted Bernal is 82 and he has no criminal history since the early 2000s.

During the Feb. 4 detention hearing, prosecutors had presented evidence they contended showed Bernal had a pattern of domestic violence toward women, including Joan.

Witnesses had also said they were in fear of Bernal, prosecutors said.

Bernal’s attorney, Dave Carlson, said prosecutors want to keep Bernal in jail simply because he is a “bad guy” and not based on the facts of the pending case. Carlson contended there is no direct evidence showing Bernal is responsible for his wife’s death.