Bond stands for two charged in woman’s death

A Lake County judge said bond should remain set at $1 million each for two people charged in connection with the death of a 34-year-old Round Lake Park woman.

Charles and Sherry Best, the brother and sister-in-law of victim Melissa Best, appeared before Associate Judge Raymond Collins on Friday.

Assistant State’s Attorney Stephen Scheller said Sherry Best, 33, provided the heroin that killed her sister-in-law and the hypodermic needle through which it was injected sometime after Melissa Best joined her at a Waukegan motel on April 15.

Scheller said after Melissa Best died of an overdose of the heroin, Charles Best, 37, grabbed his sister-in-law under the arms and carried her down three flights of stairs.

Charles Best put Melissa’s body into her own van and drove it to a Grayslake apartment complex he was familiar with because he had once dated a woman who lived there, Scheller said.

Although Melissa Best’s husband reported her missing April 16, police did not discover her body in the van until April 25.

Charles and Sherry Best were arrested Thursday afternoon at their Waukegan residence, and Scheller said they have both admitted their roles in their sister-in-law’s death.

Both are charged with concealing a homicide. Sherry Best faces an additional charge of drug-induced homicide.

Collins appointed the Lake County public defender’s office to represent Sherry Best and ordered her to appear in court June 8.

Charles Best, who told Collins he makes $1,160 to $1,200 every two weeks at the Waukegan factory where he works, is due to appear in court May 17 to report on his progress in hiring his own lawyer.