Shadwick King Guilty Of Murdering His Wife In Geneva: Judge

GENEVA, IL — Kane County State’s Attorney Jamie L. Mosser announced on Friday afternoon that Judge John A. Barsanti found Shadwick R. King guilty of first-degree murder in the killing of his wife, 32-year-old Kathleen King, in July 2014.

King maintained his innocence, and he hired world-famous wrongful conviction attorney Kathleen Zellner of suburban Downers Grove to represent him in what amounted to his second murder trial over the past seven years.

“This has been a journey of now more than eight years for Kathleen’s family," Assistant State's Attorney Greg Sams remarked in Friday's press release. "And that is where I want to start. They lost so much when Kathleen was murdered, and yet they have remained ever vigilant, ever caring, and ever dedicated to her memory. This verdict does not give them Kathleen back, but it is a continued step forward in their recovery from the grief I remember seeing in their faces in July 2014."

According to Mosser, Kane County Assistant State’s Attorneys Sams, Mark D. Stajdohar and Margaret O’Brien presented evidence that, shortly after 5 a.m. on July 6, 2014, Shadwick King asphyxiated Kathleen King at their home.

Shadwick King had recently learned that Kathleen King was emotionally involved with another man. He then put her body on the Union Pacific Railway tracks in the vicinity of the 200 block of Briar Lane and Esping Park on Geneva’s east side.

Shortly after 6:30 a.m. that day, a Metra Rail conductor saw a female body lying on the tracks. Geneva police immediately responded and determined the woman was dead.

A jury in March 2015 found Shadwick King guilty of first-degree murder in Kathleen King’s death, and a judge sentenced him to 30 years of prison. However, the Illinois Appellate Court Second District, citing concerns with an expert witness, nullified the jury’s guilty verdict and ordered a new trial in 2020.

On Friday, Judge Barsanti set King’s next appearance for 1:30 p.m. on Oct. 5 in Courtroom 319 at the Kane County Judicial Center for post-trial motions. Judge Barsanti revoked King’s bond upon the conviction.

King remains in custody at the Kane County jail.

Kane County State’s Attorney Mosser said: “During the first jury trial and the second bench trial, ASA Sams and his prosecution team presented evidence that Mr. King strangled his wife and left her body on the train tracks. The guilty verdict then and the guilty verdict now are just. I hope that this will bring additional healing to Ms. King’s family."

Related Patch coverage: Kathleen Zellner: Geneva Woman's Death On Train Tracks Wasn't Murder