Murder Trial Set For Man Accused Of Killing DuPage County Teen in 1985

DUPAGE COUNTY, IL — More than 30 years after 15-year-old Kristy Wesselman was found murdered in a wooded area in nearby Glen Ellyn, her accused murderer is finally going to trial.

Michael Jones, 63, of Champaign, has been charged with raping and killing Wesselman in 1985. His trial for aggravated criminal sexual assault and first-degree murder is set to begin Jan. 23, 2018.

Authorities say Wesselman left school on July 21, 1985, and bought a candy bar and a soda at the Jewel-Osco along her route home. The next day, police found her body and a half-eaten candy bar on a patch of land near Route 53 and Butterfield Road, not far from her home.

The case had gone cold until 2015, when Jones was required to submit a DNA sample in an unrelated aggravated domestic battery case. His results were flagged as a match to DNA from Wesselman's murder case that had been submitted to a national database, detectives said.

In the time since Wesselman's rape and murder, Jones has been implicated in several similar crimes, including kidnapping an 18-year-old in 1977; and repeatedly drugging and sexually assaulting a seventh-grade girl between 1989 and 1990, according to The News-Gazette.

DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin asked a judge in May to allow a jury to hear evidence from those cases, which may suggest a pattern of behavior. The trial had initially been delayed to allow Judge George Bakalis time to work through the requests.

Jones faces up to 80 years or natural life in prison for if convicted of Wesselman's murder.

Image via DuPage County State's Attorney's Office