Man gets 20 years for West Chicago home invasion

Jilted by his girlfriend, Alejandro De La Salle told police he planned to break into her home armed with scissors, tape and a cord.

The drunken man targeted the wrong house, though, and instead terrorized an 11-year-old West Chicago girl who awoke to an assailant in her bedroom.

De La Salle, 30, was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for home invasion, aggravated unlawful restraint, residential burglary and criminal trespass.

DuPage Circuit Judge Michael Burke found the West Chicago man guilty of the 12-felony count indictment in late October. De La Salle faced 30 to 60 years in prison.

Early on Oct. 9, 2006, police rushed to a home on the 1000 block of Elizabeth Street in West Chicago where a single mother of four children called 911 for help.

An assailant slashed a screen in the front window, climbed through and crept into the 11-year-old girl's bedroom. The child testified during the trial that the man grabbed her head and tried to tape her mouth shut. He fled as she screamed.

Less than 30 minutes later, at 2:45 a.m., police stopped De La Salle after spotting him walking six blocks from the girl's home. He was wearing a similar color shirt as the one the child described.

At the police station, authorities said De La Salle made oral and written confessions. The defendant said he meant to break into the nearby home of a girlfriend, who angered him after ignoring his phone calls.

Defense attorney Robert Arnold argued it was far from a perfect case. He said police forced a coerced confession after grilling De La Salle for more than 21 hours. Arnold noted police lacked physical evidence that connected him to the crime. Four of his friends testified De La Salle was partying with them until about 2 a.m. Oct. 9, 2006.

But prosecutors Helen Kapas-Erdman and Joseph Ruggiero said the friends were either mistaken or exaggerated how late they were all together. For example, one friend who was the most sober in the group testified he made a phone call shortly before dropping off De La Salle. A check of his phone records showed the call was made at 12:30 a.m., giving the defendant plenty of time to commit the crime.

Moreover, prosecutors said De La Salle knew specific details about the crime scene an innocent person wouldn't be privy to, such as the fact the assailant left behind the scissors, tape and a length of cord and used a step ladder to climb through the window.

Judge Burke agreed. He also said there was no evidence police coerced the confession.