Suspect in homeless man's slaying to waive extradition

The suspect in the grisly slaying last week of a homeless man in McHenry County is waiving his extradition from Tennessee back to Illinois where he will face a first-degree murder charge.

Kyle W. Morgan could come back McHenry County as early as Feb. 10, when he is scheduled to appear in a Davidson County, Tenn., courtroom to possibly finalize proceedings leading to his return.

Morgan, a 24-year-old self-described artist and musician formerly of Arlington Heights, is charged with stabbing Robin A. Burton repeatedly Jan. 19 during a fatal confrontation at his Woodstock apartment.

Police have said there is no clear motive for the killing and there is no evidence of a prior relationship or dispute between the two men.

Morgan fled the state after the slaying, but was arrested the next day in Nashville after he attempted to elude police by driving on a sidewalk in the city's downtown, seriously injuring two people he drove over in the escape bid. He appeared in a Nashville courtroom Tuesday morning on charges of aggravated assault stemming from the incident.

After a hearing featuring testimony from the mother of one of the victims and a police officer who witnessed the incident, a judge ruled that authorities have probable cause to hold Morgan over on the charges while a grand jury decides whether to issue a formal indictment.

Morgan's attorney in Tennessee, John Oliva, declined to comment on the hearing and his client's reasons for waiving extradition. Morgan did not offer any testimony or evidence on his own behalf Tuesday.

Susan Niland, communications director of the Davidson County District Attorney General's office, said regardless of whether Morgan returns to Illinois next month, Tennessee authorities will press forward with the case against him and expect him to be tried there first.

"The charges will not be dismissed because of what's happening in Illinois," she said.

Morgan had a relatively minor criminal record before the murder charge, but there were numerous indications he was a deeply troubled young man.

In July he was hospitalized for about a week when he cut his own wrists and jumped from a second-floor balcony after a dispute with his girlfriend in Arlington Heights.

A MySpace page he created, along with online photo gallery, displayed an infatuation for notorious killers, both real and fictional, and he listed the "Satanic Bible" and "Anarchist's Cookbook" as two of his favorite books. He wore tattoos on his back reading "Serial Killer" and "666."

After his arrest, Morgan's family issued a statement saying he had struggled unsuccessfully against mental illness for years.