Highland Park mass shooting suspect’s father takes plea deal after July 4th massacre

Crimo must surrender any weapons he currently owns and his firearms licence

The father of the Illinois 4th July parade mass shooting suspect has pleaded guilty to misdemeanors relating to his son’s gun license.

Robert Crimo Jr. entered his plea on Monday morning as part of a deal with prosecutors.

He pleaded guilty to seven misdemeanor counts of reckless conduct, and as part of his plea deal will be sentenced to 60 days in jail and 2 years probation. He’ll also be required to complete 100 hours of community service, give up his Firearm Owners’ Identification Card, and to surrender any weapons he currently owns, according to CBS News.

His son, Robert Crimo III, allegedly killed seven people at a 2022 4th July shooting in Highland Park, a suburban city north of Chicago.

Prosecutors are arguing that the elder Crimo ignored warning signs that his son was a danger to the public. They have accused him of cosigning for his son to acquire a gun license in 2019, even though the younger Crimo allegedly threatened to “kill everyone” just months prior.

Robert E. Crimo Jr., waits to leave after an appearance at the Lake County Courthouse, Friday, Nov. 3

When police searched his house after the initial threat, they found 16 knives, a dagger, and a sword, but ultimately did not find probable cause to arrest him at the time.

The elder Crimo had maintained that he had done nothing wrong prior to his guilty plea.

Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said had the case gone to trial, they would have presented evidence arguing that he knew his son was experiencing “violent ideations” before cosigning for his son’s gun licencse.

The prosecution also intended to argue that the younger Crimo had sent suicidal text messages, and that the elder Crimo was aware of those texts prior to signing off on the licensce.

The elder Crimo’s attorney, George Gomez, said he took the plea deal to avoid jeapordising his son’s upcoming murder trial.

“As you all know, this matter was going to be tried first before his son’s case was going to be tried. This would mean that the potential key evidence would be disclosed to the public, jeopardizing his son’s fair right to trial. As a father, Mr. Crimo wanted to ensure that his son received a fair trial,” Mr Gomez said.

The elder Crimo will be transferred to the Lake County Jail on 15 November.

His son’s murder trial will be scheduled during a hearing in September.