Sheley changes mind on plea
GALESBURG – Nicholas Sheley changed his mind, and will not plead guilty to killing Ronald Randall.
And for now, he will not be granted a change of venue.
The packed courtroom gasped Friday when defense attorney Jeremy Karlin told Knox County Judge James Stewart that his client will not plead guilty in the death of the 65-year-old.
At a hearing last month, Sheley, who faces the death penalty in this case, told Stewart he wanted to plead guilty, and just last week, his attorneys filed court documents indicating that he still intended to change his plea.
Neither Karlin nor Sheley gave a reason for the change, and Sheley spoke only once, answering “yes” when Stewart asked him if it was his intent not to plea.
Sheley, 30, of Sterling, is charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder and seven other felonies in Randall’s death. Prosecutors say that on June 28, 2008, he killed Randall, dumped his body behind a local grocery store, then stole his wallet and his truck.
He also is charged in seven other deaths in Whiteside County and Missouri.
Stewart also denied Sheley’s request to be tried somewhere other than Knox County.
Karlin says a “barrage” of media coverage in the 15 months since Sheley’s arrest, which has included accounts of his past criminal history and evidence not normally allowed at trial, makes it impossible to find 12 unbiased jurors in Knox County.
He cited two automated telephone polls, conducted in June and October, in which the majority of respondents said that they thought Sheley was “probably” guilty and that it would be difficult for them to be impartial.
Prosecutors noted that the polls failed to ask questions they would face during the jury selection process, such as the presumption of innocence and whether they could render a verdict only on the facts presented at trial.
Stewart agreed.
“We simply cannot assume that the poll answers would remain the same,” Stewart said.
Stewart also said the motion was “premature,” and if attorneys have a difficult time selecting a jury before trial, the issue could be revisited then.
