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16-year-old pleads guilty to 2020 slaying of Glenview teen, sentencing set for Dec. 13

The teenager charged with the August 2020 stabbing death of Glenview teen Elias Valdez pleaded guilty to second-degree murder during a juvenile court hearing Monday.

The 16-year-old defendant next appears in-person Dec. 13 in a Skokie courtroom. The defendant remains on electronic home monitoring by order of Cook County Judge Steven Bernstein.

It is the Daily Herald's policy not to name juveniles charged with crimes.

Valdez, 15, was found in the grassy parkway on the 1200 block of Greenwood Road at about 7 p.m. Aug. 5, 2020, with multiple stab wounds to his chest. He died later that night during surgery at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge. According to police, it was the first murder in the village since 2004.

Last August, friends and family members held a memorial for Valdez, then a rising sophomore at Glenbrook South High School and a member of the wrestling team.

Assistant wrestling coach Chris Albandia has described Valdez as charismatic, a hard worker and an athlete with potential who was inspired by his more experienced teammates.

The home monitoring order for the defendant sparked accusations of preferential treatment and led to protests at the Glenview Police Department and the Cook County Second Municipal District Courthouse in Skokie during August and September 2020, respectively.

Marcella Fierros, Valdez's mother, wanted the defendant charged with first-degree murder and held in custody.

"What's my right as a victim?" Fierros said in August 2020. "I want to have justice."

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