WAUKEGAN, Ill. (AP) — Survivors recounted the horror a gunman caused when he fired dozens of bullets at a 2022 Independence Day parade in suburban Chicago, detailing during a sentencing hearing for the man on Wednesday how they fled, hid inside businesses or treated the wounded packed into an emergency room.
But the gunman who killed seven people and injured dozens more didn’t hear any of it.
Robert E. Crimo III, 24, refused to appear in court or watch from jail, authorities said.
Crimo pleaded guilty last month, an abrupt reversal moments before his trial was set to begin after years of unpredictable legal proceedings.
His absence didn’t stop some survivors or family members of the dead from addressing him in statements detailing their physical or emotional pain since the attack. Some described feeling empty or deeply sad; others said they now fear public gatherings. But most used their time simply to remember the people killed.