McHenry man charged with first-degree murder of ex-girlfriend takes stand, denies charges

WOODSTOCK – William J. Ross does not deny he owned and lived in a home at 518 Country Club Drive in McHenry.

He does not deny that ex-girlfriend and tenant Jacqueline Schaefer moved into the residence in 2007, after she responded to an advertisement in the local newspaper. He does not deny the two had a romantic relationship that lasted "a few years."

Ross does not deny he sealed multiple exterior doors and windows in the home before he left McHenry for a cross-country road trip in the summer of 2012.

He does not deny that someone killed Schaefer.

But, according to Ross's testimony Thursday, it was not him.

On the fourth day of Ross's trial on first-degree murder charges, the 64-year-old, dressed in a black suit, blue shirt and blue tie, took the stand in his defense and told a full courtroom he did not kill Schaefer.

Ross is accused of shooting his ex-girlfriend – who was then dressed in a black Harley-Davidson T-shirt, pink sweatpants and had her long blonde hair in a braid – in the left temporal lobe and spine sometime in 2011, sealing the bedroom with caulk, trim, paint, screws and nails, and then abandoning the McHenry home months later.

Forensic pathologist Larry Blum previously testified that, to a "reasonable degree of scientific medical certainty," two gunshot wounds were the cause of Schaefer's death.

Schaefer’s remains were found in her bedroom in Ross’s home in November 2013, nearly two years after she was killed.

Ross was arrested in 2013 in Las Vegas, where he was living at the time, and charged with concealing a homicide. In 2014, he was charged with murder.

All while Defense Attorney Stephen Richards was questioning him, Ross remained composed.

"Did you kill Jacqueline Schaefer," Richards asked.

"No, I did not," Ross responded confidently.

He said the last time he saw Schaefer was in the fall of 2011. He said he was visiting friends in Wisconsin and when he returned to McHenry, she was gone.

Ross said Schaefer told him several times she wanted to move back to Missouri and so he thought she may have gone there. He said he did not confirm if she had actually done so.

During an interview with McHenry County detectives in Las Vegas in 2013, he said he never tried to talk Schaefer into staying, but he did not want her to leave McHenry.

"How do you know she didn't go floatin' down the river," Ross said in 2013 during questioning.

On cross examination, Assistant State's Attorney Michael Combs asked Ross why Schaefer would leave her Missouri ID, checkbook and personal belongings in her bedroom in McHenry if she had intended to leave the state.

Combs proceeded to rip open the evidence envelope to show the defendant Schaefer's ID.

Ross said Schaefer had other belongings in storage units in McHenry and Missouri.

Combs asked Ross if he had any enemies. Ross said he did and that his longtime friend, Renee Bitton, who testified earlier in the trial, "wasn't very friendly at some times."

Ross went on later to say he believed Bitton was a liar, thief and drug addict, and went as far as to point the finger at Bitton, arguing that someone may have killed Schaefer and planted his DNA found on the caulk between the sealed bedroom door.

"They found the body in your home," Combs said to Ross.

"I understand that," Ross responded.

Ross also said Schaefer had several enemies, including a man she lived with in Missouri, a motorcycle gang and even her own family members, who he claimed Schaefer said wanted her dead for a life insurance policy.

Ross testified that he left McHenry in 2012 so he could visit people he knew out west, including friends and his sister, who lives in Colorado.

"It's something I always wanted to do," he said.

Bitton previously testified Wednesday that Ross told her he was leaving and asked her to watch over the outside of the home, but to never enter the residence. Despite his objections, Bitton testified to entering the home at least seven times between January 2013 and November 2013, including a time when pipes burst.

Bitton also said she and her then-boyfriend, Jerome Mikos, unsealed the bedroom door on Nov. 6, 2013, and found the remains which were later identified as Schaefer. Bitton claimed she entered the room because she wanted to retrieve a space heater.

Combs went on to question why Ross asked Bitton to watch over the home if he believed she was a liar and would steal from him. Ross said he knew it would be inexpensive and she had done work for him before.

"You let somebody who (you believe) regularly does cocaine take care of your property," Combs asked Ross. "Why didn't you tell her to stay away from the property all together."

"I took my chances," Ross responded.

Prosecutors introduced evidence this week that Ross was arrested on two separate instances of domestic battery against Schaefer, who suffered physical injuries including a broken wrist, bloody lip and red abrasions on her neck.

"I did not do that," Ross said, referring to assaulting Schaefer. Ross continued to deny he physically assaulted Schaefer in any way.

Ross faces 20 to 60 years on the murder charge and if prosecutors are able to prove the crime was committed with a firearm, he could be sentenced to an additional 25 years to life.

Closing statements are expected to begin Friday morning and then jurors will begin deliberation. Judge Sharon Prather is presiding over the trial.