No bail for Maine Township dad in girl's death

A man charged with murdering his 5-year-old daughter is being held without bond, in what Cook County authorities say could be a death penalty case.

Judge Lauren Gottainer Edidin ordered Elmyr Lawson, 37, of 9205 Potter Road in unincorporated Maine Township, held without bond during a hearing at the Skokie courthouse Saturday.

Lawson is charged with two counts of first-degree murder for allegedly suffocating his daughter, Kae, with a towel in their home Thursday. Lawson admitted killing the child because she had messed up her toys, Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart said Friday.

The Cook County medical examiner's office conducted an autopsy and declared the official cause of death as suffocation and ruled it a homicide, a spokesman said Saturday.

In asking that Lawson be held without bond, Assistant State's Attorney Michele Gemskie said he exhibited "brutal and heinous behavior" and that the pre-schooler's death was a "prolonged and agonizing way to die."

Gemskie said Lawson is eligible for the death penalty, but did not say if they would seek it.

Lawson's attorney, Richard Kling, said his client has a history of mental problems and was on a "plethora of medications," some of which were being taken properly and some not.

Kling asked the judge if his client could get additional hospital care at the Cook County jail and the judge agreed.

A certified phlebotomist, Lawson stopped working a year ago to take care of his daughter, known to most as "Kae C." His wife Geraldine worked two jobs, one as a nurse.

On the morning of the murder, authorities say Lawson drove Geraldine to work, wishing her a happy seventh anniversary as she left the car.

When they spoke again at 7 p.m. both were laughing and happy.

But in a videotaped confession, Lawson told authorities he became angry when his daughter began making a mess with her toys. On the video, he demonstrated how he grabbed her from behind, put a towel over her face and held it there for 10 minutes, according to Gemskie.

"He leaned on his daughter and pushed his weight on her as he held his hand over her face with the towel," Gemskie said.

Lawson told authorities he then left the home, wanting to get far away.

The young girl was found by her mom at about 10:20 p.m. Thursday. Geraldine had expected a ride home from work from her husband. When Lawson did not arrive at around 8 p.m., she called home several times, but got no answer.

When she finally arrived home, she found her daughter on the ground, her skin pale and her lips dark blue. She begged for her to wake up.

"She could not, would not wake," Gemskie said.

The child was taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, where she was pronounced dead.

Lawson was arrested around midnight that evening in Elk Grove Village, where he was sitting in his car in a store parking lot near Route 53 and Biesterfield Road, police said.

Police said he has no prior criminal record. Originally from the Philippines, Lawson moved to the U.S. when he was 17.

About a dozen friends and family members of the Lawsons attended the hearing. His next court date is March 11.