Algonquin woman guilty of soliciting ex-husband's murder

An Algonquin woman faces a minimum of 20 years in prison after being convicted of soliciting a homeless man to have her former husband killed.

Sherrieann Remsik-Miller, 46, was found guilty of solicitation of murder and solicitation of murder for hire Monday after a bench trial in front of Kane County Judge Thomas Mueller.

According to testimony, Remsik-Miller offered $30,000 for her estranged husband's murder to a homeless man she met while volunteering at an Elgin shelter in the spring of 2008.

The man who was solicited later turned to police and recorded conversations in which Remsik-Miller said he should strap explosives to the bottom of her husband's truck and also discussed the possibility of using a gun.

Prosecutor Nemura Pencyla said the plot was "all about money," as Remsik-Miller believed she would get a large insurance payout if her husband was killed.

"For whatever reason, she thought her way out of a financial situation was to commit a heinous crime," he said.

Defense attorney John Paul Carroll acknowledged that it was his client's voice on the recordings but said it wasn't proof she intended to actually have her husband killed.

"Sometimes we say and do things, and we don't really mean it," he said. Bolstering the prosecution was testimony from Joanie Bellas, a felon who met Remsik-Miller in the county jail. Bellas said Remsik-Miller wanted Bellas' husband to kill the man she initially solicited to prevent him from testifying against her.

"She asked if my husband would take care of the witness," Bellas said. "She felt he was the most important thing in her case. Without him, there would be no case."

Remsik-Miller's ex-husband, Gerald Miller, who filed for divorce after her arrest, said Monday that he and his wife had been living apart for some time but were working toward reconciliation.

He said he had no idea she was planning his death.

"It's not like we didn't get along," he said outside of court. "I had dinner with her three days before police came to the house."

Whether Remsik-Miller will be charged in the second solicitation is under review, Pencyla said. She could be sentenced to 20 to 40 years in prison on July 22.