Joliet Township's Murder Defendant Asked For Home Confinement

JOLIET, IL — In exactly one month, the Joliet Township murder trial for now-25-year-old Amari Morgan is set to begin, more than seven-and-a-half years after the brutal baseball bat beating death of next door neighbor, Robert "Bob" Bielec, 62. In June, Will County Judge Vince Cornelius sentenced Morgan's brother, Blaique, to 27 years of prison.

At the time of sentencing, the judge noted Blaique Morgan was not the main aggressor in the bat attack upon Bielec moments after he pulled into his driveway on Houston Avenue late at night in January 2016. According to the trial testimony, it was actually Amari Morgan who swung the baseball bat numerous times, leaving his next door neighbor dead right outside the house.

In April, court records show, Amari Morgan's private criminal defense lawyer, Jeff Tomczak of the Tomczak Law Group, filed a motion asking Judge Cornelius to put his client on GPS confinement. Bail has remained at $1.5 million "which is excessive in that he lacks the funds or means to meet the financial requirements of the set bail," Tomczak's motion argued.

According to Tomczak, the Larson family would let Amari Morgan reside in their home on Bryan Avenue in Joliet under strict GPS home confinement and would appear in court each and every time this case is up.

"This defendant assures the court that he will provide the court and his attorney with a current address at all times while this case is pending so that notices may be sent to him," Tomczak's motion reflected. "The defendant will refrain from consuming drugs, alcohol and cannabis while on strict GPS home confinement ... the defendant respectfully requests that this court enter an order allowing the defendant to be released from custody on strict GPS home confinement and subjects to any other conditions or restrictions within the court's judgment."

Judge Cornelius denied the motion to put Amari Morgan on GPS home confinement with the trial just months away.

According to court records, Amari Morgan's jury trial is set to begin in Courtroom 404 on Sept. 11 at the Will County Courthouse, the same courtroom where brother Blaique was found guilty of murder by Judge Cornelius, following a bench trial.

Testimony presented at Blaique Morgan's murder trial revealed the Morgan brothers ambushed Bielec and bashed in his skull, causing him to die from head trauma moments after Bielec pulled into his driveway, under the dark of night, around 10:30 p.m. on Jan. 7, 2016.

Related Joliet Patch coverage:

27 Years Prison: Brutal Joliet Township Baseball Bat Murder