Guilty Verdict For Ex-Heights Man Accused of Manslaughter

CHICAGO HEIGHTS, IL — For eight years Catherine Peters-Bird never stopped seeking justice for her daughter, Michele Peters, formerly of Hometown, who was shot in the face at age 30 in her Chicago heights home. Peters-Bird, has steadfastly attended every one of her daughter’s live-in boyfriend, George Kleopa, 40, who was charged in her daughter’s 2012 shooting death.

On Thursday, Peters-Bird got the justice she hoped and prayed for after eight long years, when a jury found Kleopa guilty of involuntary manslaughter of a family member, which carries with it a proof of recklessness. The day before, Kleopa tearfully testified in his own defense, referring to Peters as his wife, although both were not married. Kleopa explained to jurors how on March 6, 2012, he asked Peters to bring him his gun, so he could clean it. He then described how the gun discharged in his hand after Peters handed it to him. The bullet entered Peters’ cheek and lodge in her brain. She died later that evening at St. James Hospital.

>>> Trial Begins For Man Accused Of Shooting Girlfriend in 2012

In closing arguments, Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney Michelle Spizzirri told jurors that Kleopa, the owner of two guns, ignored “remedial gun safety rules” by "failing to assume that a firearm is always loaded and to never put your finger on the trigger unless you plan to shoot it." She also discussed testimony by Robert Hunton, a forensics criminal scientist for the Illinois State Police, who examined the Kleopa’s Springfield XE .40-caliber handgun in May 2012 and found the firearm’s safety features in good working order.

“The story you heard that he handed the gun to his wife and it magically went off defies logic, credibility and common sense,” Spizzirri said. “He blames the object.”

Kleopa’s attorney David Sotomayor ripped apart Officer Alfredo Salinas’ testimony, who arrived at the couple’s home at 105 W. Hickory St. fifteen minutes after the shootin. Salinas testified that he took swabs and a picture of a blood-drenched Kleopa in the couple's kitchen. During Salinas’ first interview, Kleopa told the detective he was “playing with the gun back and forth with my finger on the trigger when the gun went off.”

Sotomayor told the jurors he was going to use a “four-letter word” that may offend them: “Liar.” The attorney also criticized Salinas for not taking notes of his first interview with Kleopa. He implied that prosecutors were trying to hide evidence by not introducing Kleopa’s 911 call or the video of Kleopa’s second hour-and-half long interview by Chicago Heights detectives.

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“They want you to convict George based on the testimony of a liar,” Sotomayor said. “End this eight-year nightmare today.”

During the rebuttal, lead prosecutor Nick D’Angelo said he purposely made the decision to not introduce interrogation videos or the 911 call “to force the defendant to take the stand.”

“When I showed him a photo of his Mossberg shotgun, I asked how did Michele know which gun? ‘Oh, I said handgun.’ I wanted you to see how he shifted his story consistent with what he told Officer Salinas,” D’Angelo said. “Evidence showed that the gun didn’t fire without a finger on that trigger.”

Kleopa’s bottom lip trembled when the guilty verdict was read in the courtroom. D’Angelo asked Judge Patrick Coughlin to revoke Kleopa’s $1.5 million bail.

Sotomayor told the judge that his client has attended every court hearing for eight years. Kleopa has no prior criminal background and is eligible for probation. Sotomayor asked that Kleopa be allowed to remain free on bail until his sentencing, and for permission to travel to California to see his children.

The judge denied the request. Sotomayor then asked that Kleopa be permitted to visit his gravely ill, 94-year-old grandmother, with electronic monitoring.

“She probably won’t make it through the weekend,” Sotomayor told the judge.

“That’s premature at this point,” Judge Coughlin said. “You can file a motion.”

After the verdict, Peters-Bird said she was feeling a swirl of emotions.

“I’m sad for my grandsons, because now they’ve lost their other parent,” she said. “I’m sad for [Kleopa’s mother] Sophia, because now she’s lost a child too.”

A pre-sentencing hearing is set for March 12 in the Markham Courthouse.