The Lake County prosecutor s office dropped charges Thursday against James Hill and Pierre L. Catlett in the 1980 homicide of off-duty Hammond police Officer Lawrence J. "Larry" Pucalik.
James Hill Jr., 58, was scheduled to make his first court appearance Wednesday following a judge s decision in May to set aside Hill s 2018 conviction in the homicide of off-duty
The release of Pierre Catlett came after a judge set aside a murder conviction for his co-defendant, James Hill Jr., because prosecutors didn t turn over evidence to the defense before
CROWN POINT â A Lake Criminal Court judge on Tuesday set aside a man s murder conviction in the 1980 shooting death of an off-duty Hammond police officer because prosecutors didn t turn over evidence to the man s defense before his trial more than two years ago.
James Hill Jr., 58, was serving a 40-year sentence following his August 2018 conviction for murder in perpetration of a robbery in the homicide of Officer Lawrence J. Larry Pucalik on Nov. 14, 1980, at the Holiday Inn-Southeast, formerly at the intersection of Cline Avenue and Interstate 80/94.
In a joint motion filed Tuesday, defense attorney Scott King and Lake County First Assistant Deputy Prosecutor Peter Villarreal asked Judge Salvador Vasquez to release Hill from prison on his own recognizance pending a resolution of the case.