Another effort to free ex-professor accused of murder

CHICAGO (AP) - Lawyers for a former Northwestern University professor charged in the murder of his boyfriend argued Thursday he should be released on $1.5 million bail before trial.

Cook County Circuit Judge Charles Burns last month denied Wyndham Lathem's request to be released on $1 million so that the infectious disease expert can assist in the battle against the coronavirus.

Lathem is accused in the 2017 stabbing death of Trenton Cornell-Duranleau. Latham's accomplice, Oxford University employee Andrew Warren, pleaded guilty last year in a deal that calls for him to testify against Lathem, who has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Lathem, 45, has been held in Cook County Jail without bail since his arrest and lost his position as a professor at Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine.

The Chicago Sun-Times reports Defense attorney Adam Sheppard told the judge if Lathem is released, a third-party custodian would rent an apartment for Lathem and check in with him multiple times a day while he helps in curbing the pandemic.

Sheppard said that while the man 'œisn't somebody who's in the bag for Dr. Lathem,'ť he 'œbelieves in Dr. Lathem's ability and character to comply with the conditions of bond.

Assistant State's Attorney Craig Engebretson said Lathem led authorities on a manhunt across the country before his arrest and remains a flight risk.

Burns did not rule on Lathem's motion, setting a court date for June 12.