Police: Argument lead to man's dragging death

An all-day argument, punctuated by a court appearance and a shopping spree with stolen credit cards, apparently led to a Round Lake Beach man being dragged to death under his girlfriend's car, a prosecutor said Friday.

Lori Michelsen, 43, of Arlington Heights was ordered held on $1 million bond after being charged with first-degree murder in the Tuesday death of Brian Boatright.

Lake County Assistant State's Attorney Patricia Fix said Michelsen dated Boatright, 29, for about nine months before their fatal clash.

Boatright died of massive internal injuries, officials said, after Michelsen dragged him for about a half-mile under her white Volvo station wagon.

Fix said witnesses told police the couple were arguing at 8 a.m. Tuesday in the unit Boatright rented at Meadow Green Apartments. One person told police she heard Michelsen curse at Boatright and tell him he was not going to leave her.

Michelsen appeared before Circuit Judge George Bridges later that day on a deceptive practices charge from Antioch, and her case was continued to Feb. 19.

From there, Fix said, the couple stopped at several stores in Gurnee where Michelsen is seen on videotape making purchases with stolen credit cards.

"Police are still investigating where those cards came from and how they came to be in Michelsen's possession," Fix said. "We believe she may have stolen a purse while in Waukegan."

Other witnesses reported hearing the couple arguing at Boatright's apartment around 2 p.m., Fix said.

Around 6 p.m., they were in Michelsen's car drinking alcohol in a parking lot on the 300 block of Rollins Road, Fix said. The argument rekindled, and Boatright got out and was standing in front of the car when Michelsen drove forward.

"Both of his legs were broken in the place where the car's front bumper would have struck him," Fix said. "Based on the damage done to the legs, the coroner estimates the car was going between 15 and 20 mph when the victim was struck."

Witnesses say Boatright was pulled underneath the car and Michelsen drove in circles in the parking lot as people screamed at her to stop because someone was under her car.

One witness told police he heard Michelsen scream "shut up" as he tried to get her attention, officials say.

Michelsen left the lot, drove north on Cedar Lake Road, west on Meadow Green Lane and pulled into the Meadow Green Apartments parking lot before Boatright's body was dislodged.

When police arrived, Michelsen was standing over Boatright's body and the Volvo was parked about eight spaces away, Fix said.

Round Lake Beach Deputy Chief Rich Chiarello said during a Friday news conference Michelsen originally told officers a blue car hit her boyfriend, then drove away.

"She could be described as hysterical when officers arrived on the scene," he said. "We promised Mr. Boatright's mother that we would assemble the best group of people to get to the bottom of this. I believe we have done that."

Detectives from the Lake County Major Crimes Task Force arrested Michelsen and she gave them a videotaped account of what happened.

Fix said Michelsen, who had a blood alcohol content of .072 percent at the time, is also charged with aggravated driving under the influence and causing a death.

Associate Judge Theodore Potkonjak appointed the public defender to represent Michelsen and ordered her to appear in court Feb. 8.