Domestic squabble began over photos of deceased person
Randy Visor, a 42-year-old Aurora man who killed four in a drunken driving crash in 1997, teamed up with his dad last month in a domestic attack spurred over someone taking pictures of a dead relative, prosecutors said in court filings.
Visor, of the 1600 block of Solifsburg Avenue, faces felony domestic battery charges from the February incident and Ernest Visor, 65, of the same address, is charged with a misdemeanor.
Police said the Visors got into a fight with a 59-year-old man in an argument after the recent death of a family member.
“The state is alleging that on Feb. 8, 2012, the defendants got into an argument with (the victim) about the taking of photos of a deceased person. The defendants then battered the victim,” wrote Kane County Assistant State's Attorney Jamie Mosser in court filings.
Randy Visor, who turned himself in last month after a warrant was issued, faces, if convicted, one to three years in prison on the felony charge, but probation also is an option.
If the matter heads to trial, prosecutors want the Visors tried together, with two separate juries empaneled to determine each Visor's guilt or innocence. “The witnesses necessary to try each defendant would be identical,” Mosser wrote in court filings.
Visor was charged with a felony because he has a previous conviction for violation of an order of protection, court records show.
On Oct. 23, 2005, Batavia police responded to a domestic dispute in the 1100 block of East Wilson Street involving Visor and a woman who had previously obtained an order of protection. Visor pleaded guilty to the charge in April 2007, was fined $455, ordered to undergo 26 weeks of domestic violence counseling and given 11 months probation, according to court records.
Matthew Downs, who served as Visor's defense attorney for the 2005 incident and the current case, could not immediately be reached for comment Friday.
At 4:05 a.m. on Oct. 17, 1997, a drunk and speeding Visor ran a red light at Eola Road and New York Street in Aurora and slammed into another car, killing Waubonsie High School students Jenni Linn Anderson, Allison Matzdorf and Jennifer Roberts.
The three 16-year-olds from Naperville were best friends and were on their way to prank another student. The crash also killed Visor's passenger, Ana Pryor, a 27-year-old mother of three.
Visor was convicted and sentenced in 1998 to 13 years in prison, but received time off for good behavior and taking self-help classes. He was released in November 2002 after serving about one-third of his sentence.
Visor's case prompted strengthening of reckless homicide laws to a maximum of 28 years in prison instead of 14 years when a DUI results in multiple deaths. Offenders also must serve 85 percent of their sentence instead of 50 percent.