Witness: Sitter was 'scared' during call before murder

A Waukegan woman testified Tuesday she received a phone call from a "scared" Holly Staker on the day the 11-year-old baby sitter was killed.

Marilyn Abraraun-Guadarrama said Staker called her between 6 and 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 17, 1992 and asked her to come to the Hickory Street apartment where Staker was baby sitting.

"She said she was scared and was hearing noises," Abraraun-Guadarrama said. "She said she could hear people talking outside but could not see anybody."

The testimony came in the third trial of Juan Rivera, 36, who has twice been found guilty and sentenced to life in prison, but new trials were ordered after each conviction.

Abraraun-Guadarrama said she knew Staker through a mutual friend, and the three girls spent time together at each other's houses.

Under cross-examination by Lake County Assistant State's Attorney Raquel Robels-Eschbah, Abraraun-Guadarrama said she may have told a police officer two days after the murder that she had visited Staker at the Hickory Street apartment on other occasions.

She also said it was possible she told the officer she did not believe Staker was scared when she called Aug. 17, and instead thought her friend just said that because she was bored.

However, Abraraun-Guadarrama answered "no" when defense attorney Thomas Sullivan asked her if there was any doubt in her mind Staker was frightened when she made the phone call.

The jury also heard testimony from a woman who described the behavior of a man police once considered a suspect in the murder. Police ultimately determined the man played no role in the crime.

Shanita Craig testified she was at a party not far from the crime scene, and said the man left the gathering for a short time. After he had returned to the party, he was the only person who chose not to walk to Hickory Street when guests heard a commotion and went to investigate.

The next day, Craig said, she was at the house where the party was and was talking to the man, and he ran away in a panic when a police car drove past.

Also on Tuesday, jurors were taken from the courtroom to the Lake County jail where they were allowed to look at the padded cell Rivera was kept in briefly after his Oct. 30, 1992 confession to the crime.