The man who served nearly 60 years in prison for The Starved Rock Murders has died. Chester Weger died Sunday at the age of 86.
In 1960, three friends from the Chicago-area -- Lillian Oetting, Frances Murphy, and Mildred Lindquist – were beaten to death while they were hiking in the snowy St. Louis Canyon at Starved Rock State Park. Weger, who worked at the lodge and lived nearby, confessed to killing them, but later recanted, saying he had been coerced into the confession by law enforcement. He was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison in 1961.
For the rest of his life, Weger maintained he was innocent. And after decades of unanimous rejections of his pleas before the Illinois Prisoner Review Board, he was granted parole in 2020. His most recent effort to overturn his conviction failed in a LaSalle County courtroom. His attorney has pledged to continue the effort to clear his name.
The murders captured the nation’s attention in 1960 and again in 2021, when HBO aired a documentary examining Weger’s claims of innocence.
Weger died from lung cancer June 22 in Missouri. He is survived by two children.