Beecher Tragedy: Orland Park Man Sentenced To Prison In Deaths Of Pregnant Mom, 3 Children

JOLIET, IL — Downtown Joliet criminal defense attorney George Lenard wanted Sean Woulfe to get probation for killing Lindsey Schmidt and her three young sons during a crash near Beecher on July 24, 2017, but Will County Judge Dan Rippy imposed a sentence of two years at the Illinois Department of Corrections on Wednesday afternoon in Courtroom 402.

A resident of Orland Park, Woulfe was given two years at the Department of Corrections for each of the five counts of reckless homicide that he pleaded guilty to earlier this year in the deaths of Lindsey Schmidt, the pregnant mother, and her three young sons, Kaleb, Weston and Owen.

All penalties will be served concurrently, which means at the same time.

In March, Woulfe's jury trial on 16 counts of reckless homicide ended with a mistrial because the jury was deadlocked at 11-1. In July, Woulfe agreed to plead guilty to the five counts of reckless homicide.

In 2017, Woulfe was traveling 82 mph when he blew a stop sign in rural Will County, crashing into Lindsey Schmidt's van. The pregnant mother of three young sons was on her way to a summer Bible camp that morning near Crete.

At Wednesday's sentencing, Lenard reminded Judge Rippy that his client had no alcohol or drugs in his system at the time of the horrific wreck in rural Will County. Woulfe was also not texting. Now 30 years old, Woulfe was driving to work at AT&T at the time of the crash.

Although Woulfe did not testify in his own defense during his trial last March, he did address the courtroom on Wednesday. He turned his head toward the family members of the Schmidt family and told them how he thinks about the crash every day, and that he wishes he could change places with all five of the family members whose lives were lost as a result of his actions.

"I just hope they understand how terrible I feel and how sorry I am," Woulfe told everyone. "I am not sure how to make it up to the family and to society.

"I take full responsibility for speeding" and "traveling through the stop sign I missed.

"From the bottom of my heart, I'm sorry. I know how terrible I feel."

Assistant Will County State's Attorney Adam Capelli asked Judge Rippy to impose a sentence at the Department of Corrections for Woulfe.

"The state does believe a sentence to the Department of Corrections (is warranted) to deter others (not) to commit the same crime. The behavior of the defendant was dangerous. These are the reasons why we have driver's education course ... we do believe it's necessary to deter others."

In his argument seeking a term of probation, Lenard reminded the judge that this was a very difficult case. Lenard said the case has received "a lot of news media attention" and several people have posted comments online suggesting that his client should get a death penalty, while others have suggested that Woulfe did nothing that was criminal.

Lenard did say that he was preparing for the prospect of having a second jury trial, after the first trial ended in a deadlock, but Woulfe insisted in pleading guilty to spare the Schmidt family of having to endure another courtroom trial.

Lenard also noted that his client had no prior criminal history and his brushes with the legal system involved a handful of traffic tickets that stretched back to when Woulfe was a teenager, "and those were over 10 years ago," Lenard stressed.

Regarding his client, Lenard declared, "there's people out there that actually say he murdered people, that he should get the death penalty, but they don't understand that."

Lenard said he's represented between 3,000 to 4,000 criminal defense clients after first going to work in 1984 as a prosecutor under former Will County State's Attorney Ed Petka. He said Woulfe is his first client who ever insisted, "I don't want to go to trial because I don't want the victims' family" to endure another trial.

"Mr. Woulfe does not know the Schmidt family. And he's showing remorse, and it's actual remorse," Lenard emphasized at Wednesday's sentencing.

A church pastor who had known Lindsey Schmidt for much of his life, read a victim impact statement from Tammy Riechers, Lindsey’s mother. The letter described each of her children and how the loss of all their lives means that surviving family members will never be able to see them again until they are able to share eternal glory in heaven.

"What you have done to me and my family is unforgivable," the letter informed Woulfe. "You should receive one year for every life you took from my (family), so five years minimum."

Prosecutors had said Woulfe faced a prison term ranging between two and 10 years for the reckless homicide convictions.

Lenard was not pleased with Wednesday's sentence to the Department of Corrections for Woulfe, who has been lodged in the Will County Jail since he pleaded guilty on July 21.

Rippy agreed to schedule another hearing on Friday morning, so he can address Lenard's motion asking the judge to reconsider Woulfe's sentence.

More Patch coverage:

• Third Child Dies After Crash That Killed Pregnant Mom, Toddlers
• Reckless Homicide Charges Filed In Deaths Of Pregnant Mother, Toddlers
• Wrongful Death Lawsuit Gets Settled In Crash That Killed Pregnant Mom, 3 Children
• Beecher Tragedy: 'It Sounded Like An Explosion'