Is Joshua Miner About To Restore Bethany McKee's Freedom? 'On February 20th, This Court Ordered A New Trial'

JOLIET, IL — One of the biggest stories to emerge from the Will County Courthouse so far this year was the decision by Will County Judge Sarah Jones in February ordering a new trial for Bethany McKee, one of the people convicted of first-degree murder and given a life sentence for the Nightmare on Hickory Street strangulation murders of Terrance Rankins and Eric Glover.

In light of the judge's decision, the Will County State's Attorney's Office filed a motion on March 10 asking Judge Jones to reconsider her decision.

Now, Joliet Patch has learned, McKee's lawyer, Rachel White-Domain of the grant-funded Illinois Prison Project based in Chicago, has filed her response.

"This court has significant authority and discretion to consider whether to grant relief to Ms. McKee in light of her post-conviction claims, including setting this matter for a new trial where all evidence and witnesses can be properly considered," White-Domain argued in her response. "In the state's motion to reconsider, the state does not disagree that this court has the authority to order a new trial. Instead, the state merely argues the court must first allow the state to cross-examine co-defendant Joshua Miner at an evidentiary hearing and to otherwise present or cross-examine evidence to contest the factual issues presented by this claim.

"Ms. McKee and her counsel are confident in our claims and we have no objection to this court allowing the state to test these claims at an evidentiary hearing."

White-Domain's response goes on to explain that "Ms. McKee and her counsel have no objection to this court setting an evidentiary hearing at which the state can test the factual allegations underlying Ms. McKee's claim that her co-defendant, Joshua Miner, did not include her in any plans to kill the victims. As the state points out in their motion to reconsider, co-defendant Joshua Miner is the one who killed both of the victims in this case and indeed Mr. Miner recently killed another person, his cell mate, while incarcerated in the Illinois Department of Corrections.

"Mr. Miner is very candid in his admission of his propensity for lethal violence. We expect that, when elucidated at evidentiary hearing, these and other facts will provide further support for this court's holding that a new trial for Ms. McKee is necessary and proper."

As part of her response, White-Domain included a section titled, "If an evidentiary hearing is ordered, this court should allow all post-conviction claims to be fully presented."

In that section, White-Domain reminds Judge Jones that on Feb. 20, the judge ordered a new trial for McKee based on the affidavit of Miner "the person who actually committed these murders, who stated in his affidavit that Ms. McKee was 'never part of any conversation or plan to rob the victims or to hurt them in any way.'"

"The court's ruling did not address Ms. McKee's other post-conviction claims," White-Domain pointed out. "However, if an evidentiary hearing is ordered, we urge this court to clarify that the evidentiary hearing is to address all of the petitioner's post-conviction claims at the same time, including but not limited to her claim that her autism, only diagnosed after trial, meant that she did not fully understand her co-defendant's statements prior to the time she left the room and the murders were committed as well as her claim that her life sentence is unconstitutional as applied to her in that she was a traumatized 18-year-old at the time of this case ..."

Toward the end of her five-page filing, White-Domain further explains, "the state's primary argument against this claim is that Ms. McKee was an 'active participant' in the case. However, Judge Kinney, the judge who heard all the evidence in this case, did not see it that way, stating at sentencing, 'We have a scenario here where an individual whose involvement is aiding and abetting and yet must face the same penalty as those who actually took the acts that took the lives of these individuals. If given discretion, I would impose a sentence that is significant, but that would not be the maximum sentence."

McKee's return to the Will County Courthouse is just days away. She remains incarcerated at the Illinois women's prison in Logan. Her hearing is set for 1:30 p.m. May 11 in Courtroom 501 of Judge Sarah Jones.