ASSISTANT STATE’S ATTORNEYS NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED FOR EXCELLENCE IN CAPITAL LITIGAITON
WHEATON – DuPage County State’s Attorney Joe Birkett announced today that Michael Wolfe, Chief of Birkett’s Criminal Prosecution Bureau and Lisa Anne Hoffman, Birkett’s Supervisor of Appeals have been honored by the Association of Government Attorneys in Capital Litigation (AGACL) for their outstanding work in capital litigation. Birkett nominated the pair along with five Cook County Assistant State’s Attorneys for their work in the People v. Paul Runge murder case.
Runge was charged with the 1997 rapes and murders of Yolanda Gutierrez and her 10 year-old daughter, Jessica Muniz. At trial, prosecutors were able to prove that Runge repeatedly raped both victims, slashed their throats and set them both on fire. Runge’s defense team used an insanity defense which was quickly rejected by the jury who found Runge guilty in less than one hour. At sentencing, prosecutors were able to establish that Runge was a serial rapist and murderer who was responsible for six other brutal murders. Two of the murders occurred in DuPage County – Stacy Frobel, a friend of Runge’s girlfriend whose severed body was found scattered across northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin, and two sisters who fled worn-torn Bosnia only to be raped, murdered and dismembered by Runge – their body parts were never found. The jury agreed with prosecutors’ portrayal of Runge and recommended he receive the death penalty.
“I am extremely proud of the hard work and determination Mike and Lisa bring to the office every day, particularly their work on the Runge case,” commented Birkett. “This case had videotaping, DNA evidence and every conceivable reform implemented to ensure a fair trial. With all these safeguards in place, it took a jury less than one hour to find Mr. Runge guilty of one of the most brutal crimes in recent memory. That same jury recommended to the court that Mr. Runge be sentenced to the ultimate punishment, the death penalty. If ever there was an appropriate candidate for the death penalty, Paul Runge is it. With the current moratorium on the death penalty still in effect however, the surviving family, friends and relatives of Yolanda Gutierrez and her Daughter Jessica will have to wait for justice.”
Wolfe and Hoffman were honored Friday, August 4 at the AGACL’s 27th Annual Conference held in San Diego, California.
Founded in 1980, AGACL is an association of government attorneys specializing in death penalty cases. A non-profit association, AGACL currently boasts a membership of more than 300 government agencies and officers.
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