3 Joliet Murder Defendants Deserve Life Sentences: Holly's Mother

JOLIET, IL — The mother of Joliet Halloween party homicide victim Holly Mathews praised last week's news from the Will County Sheriff's Office: 18-year-old Joskar Ramos, 19-year-old Jeremy Lopez and 21-year-old brother Thomas Lopez now face 16 criminal charges including multiple counts of first-degree murder.

Sharyl Mathews realizes that many of Will County's killings result in plea bargains, with the killer pleading guilty to a reduced charge in exchange for a lesser sentence. But Sharyl Mathews said she is confident that the Will County State's Attorney's Office of Jim Glasgow has no intentions of working out a plea bargain for Ramos and the two Lopez brothers.

The three men are accused of shooting their guns into a crowd of about 200 people attending a backyard party, killing Mathews, 22, and a 22-year-old man, Jonathan Ceballos. Mathews did not know Ceballos and she did not know any of the three people who are charged with fatally shooting her, according to her mother.

"There will be no plea," Sharyl Mathews told Joliet Patch during last week's interview. "They are never going to see the light of day, ever."

Last week, Will County Judge David Carlson set bail at $10 million each for Ramos, Thomas Lopez and Jeremy Lopez. He also informed each of them they would spend the rest of their lives in prison, with no chance of parole, probation or conditional discharge, if they are convicted of their multiple first-degree murder offenses.

The Will County Sheriff's Office has said the Lopez brothers are known Vice Lord street gang members in Joliet. Ramos just turned 18 about a week before the shooting.

The Lopez brothers lived in the 100 block of Joliet's Clement Street. Ramos lived in the 900 block of Gael Drive, which is off Black Road.

Within days of the mass shooting, sheriff's officials announced that the shooting appeared to be gang-related, and detectives were positive that the homicide victims had no affiliation whatsoever with any gang activity.

Holly's mother told Patch that her daughter and her friends were in the backyard party at 1018 East Jackson St. near the DJ booth when someone jumped on the DJ's equipment.

"Some people are saying she was the first person shot, but we're not entirely sure," her mother said. "This was a little girl shot in the back. I think Holly was just in the way."

Holly's mother said it's her understanding that sheriff's detectives are still awaiting ballistics testings on the seized weapons to determine who shot and killed her daughter.

"He was on the ledge," Sharyl Mathews said of Ramos. "He is one of the shooters, but who shot Holly, we don't know yet."

Holly Mathews had only been at the Halloween house party on Joliet's east side for about 20 minutes. For much of that Saturday night, she, along with two other young women and one of their boyfriends, had attended a social gathering in Frankfort.

The four of them decided to visit the party on East Jackson Street because the boyfriend of one of Holly's friends had been extended an invitation, Holly's mother said.

The shooting at happened around 12:35 a.m.

Sharyl Mathews told Joliet Patch that she knew the sheriff's detectives were continuously working to solve her daughter's killing. She didn't know how soon or how long it would take before murder charges were filed.

She told Patch the Will County Sheriff's detectives did a fantastic job investigating the mass shootings. She believes they held off on filing charges until their evidence was strong enough to ensure a first-degree murder convictions against Ramos and the Lopez brothers.

Ramos has been incarcerated in the Will County Jail since the week after the shooting. However, he was being held on a $1 million bail for three unrelated felony charges not directly connected to the house party shootings.

The Lopez brothers were not arrested until last week.

Remembering Holly

Four days after Holly's slaying, Joliet Patch published an article about a GoFundMe called, "Holly Mathews Funeral and Memorial Fund."

So far, 204 people have made donations, totaling $10,265. The goal of the GoFundMe is $12,000.

Holly Mathews was finishing her schooling at Joliet Junior College, studying to become an arborist. She went to Minooka High School and graduated with the Class of 2017. She just got engaged to Adam Gregurich a week before her death.

Sharyl Mathews said the GoFundMe remains active and people can still contribute.

In the spring, family and friends plan to gather at Joliet's Pilcher Park greenhouse off Gougar Road where a bench and plaque in Holly's memory will be added to the succulent room. The bench and plaque will have her name and photo, her mother said.

Related Patch coverage: Halloween Party Murder Defendants Need $1 Million Cash For Bail