Why Christopher Vaughn's clemency bid is on hold
The Illinois State Police declined this month to refer questions to the FBI about the case of Christopher Vaughn, the Oswego man convicted of the murders of his wife and three children who has become the subject of a high-profile exoneration effort.
The rejection came after longtime Vaughn investigator Bill Clutter asked State Police Director Brendan Kelly for the FBI referral in a two-page letter dated Oct. 12, claiming "misleading and false" grand jury testimony was used to secure Vaughn's 2007 indictment.
It's an allegation Clutter has made before, including to the Office of Executive Inspector General in the months leading up to Vaughn's 2012 trial, according to records obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times.
Meanwhile, Clutter says plans to seek clemency for Vaughn from Gov. J.B. Pritzker are now on hold ahead of a Thursday petition deadline. He said he wants to further test a new claim about how Vaughn's wife and children wound up dead in the family's SUV while it was parked on a gravel path near Interstate 55 and Bluff Road on June 14, 2007.
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