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Family of slain Glenbrook South teen plans protest before suspect's hearing

The teen accused of killing a Glenbrook South High School student last month is scheduled for a hearing Wednesday morning at the Skokie courthouse.

The 16-year-old suspect is charged with second-degree murder in the death of Elias Valdez, 15, of Glenview, who would have been a sophomore this school year.

The hearing is set for 9 a.m.; a protest — the third since Elias' death Aug. 5 — is set to start at 8 a.m. in Skokie, according to posts on the Justice for Elias Valdez Facebook page, as well as on the Facebook page of organizer Krystal Flores.

During a detention hearing in juvenile court Aug. 18, the suspect was released on electronic home monitoring.

Friends and family of Elias, who was Latino, have been protesting because they believe the suspect, who is white, is getting preferential treatment, said Edith Rios, a victims rights attorney with an office in Highland Park, now working on behalf of Elias' mother, Marcela Fierros.

Glenview police have confirmed the suspect is white.

“Because the defendant is Caucasian, he's being charged as a juvenile and is at home,” said Rios, who connected with Fierros after an Aug. 30 protest at the Glenview police station that drew “maybe 70” people, according to protest organizer Oscar Ocampo.

Included in Flores' Facebook post and cited by Rio was a report from the Juvenile Justice Initiative that showed that from 2010-12, 83% of juveniles tried as adults were Black and 16% were Hispanic while only 1% of juveniles tried as adults were white.

The combined Facebook posts pertaining to the Wednesday protest have been shared more than 260 times.

Rios said she's representing Fierros pro bono under Marsy's Law for Illinois, formerly known as the Illinois Crime Victims' Bill of Rights, to “ensure that she's being informed by prosecution of the process” and “that her input is heard.”

Rios worked for the Cook County state's attorney's office first as a clerk, then as an assistant state's attorney from 2015 to 2019.

“This is a chance to make up for all those times where I had to stand idly by,” Rios said.

Cook County circuit court spokeswoman Mary Wisniewski has said a charge of second-degree murder is punishable by four to 20 years in prison, though probation also is an option.

“All (Fierros) wants is what everybody is asking right now: that white people are treated the same way minorities are,” Rios said. “It's not about throwing the book at somebody; it's just about equality.”

Elias Valdez
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