Worker at Franciscan-run home charged with murder of resident

Published: 2003-12-18

JOLIET, Ill. (CNS) -- A caregiver at a Franciscan-run residence for seniors in the Joliet Diocese has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the stabbing death of a 79-year-old resident at the facility. Will County State's Attorney Jeff Tomczak has set bond at $5 million for Demitrius Neals, 40, the resident care associate at Marian Village in Homer Glen charged with murder. She is accused of stabbing Mary Polley, a 79-year-old resident of Marian Village, on the evening of Dec. 8 on the facility's 35-acre campus, which includes independent and assisted-living housing, private apartments and garden homes. Polley was found stabbed to death in her bed; news reports said she was stabbed 20 times. "Our review of the facts in this case clearly indicates that the person who killed Ms. Polley would be eligible for the death penalty," said Tomczak, because of Polley's age and the brutal nature of the homicide. The state's attorney will have about four months to decide on pursuing the death penalty.

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