Triple murder suspect faces charges of damaging courthouse

D'Andre Howard, charged with first-degree murder in the slayings of three members of a Hoffman Estates family last spring, was arraigned on charges of criminal damage to government property Wednesday in Rolling Meadows.

If convicted of the class 4 felony, the 21-year-old Hoffman Estates man could face one to three years in prison, or be sentenced to probation.

Authorities say Howard wrenched a rectangular thermostat off the wall of a holding cell at the Rolling Meadows courthouse late last month while waiting to appear before Cook County Circuit Court Judge Joseph Urso. Howard, of the 900 block of Evanston St., tried to hide the device in his pants, authorities said. A Cook County sheriff's deputy noticed the thermostat when it slipped from Howard's pant leg, authorities said.

At this time, prosecutors have elected to pursue the capital murder charges against Howard, charged in the stabbing deaths of Laura Engelhardt, 18, her father Alan, 57, and Laura's maternal grandmother Marlene Gacek during the early morning of April 17. Shelly Engelhardt, Laura's mother and Alan's wife, was injured in the attack but survived.

At the time, Howard was dating Laura's older sister, Amanda Engelhardt. The couple have an infant daughter. If convicted of the murders, Howard could face the death penalty.