Community Corner
Gov. Quinn Mulling Fate of Oak Forest Man on Death Row
With the death penalty ban on his desk, Gov. Pat Quinn tells Illinois Statehouse News he'll consider the fates of Death Row inmates, including former Oak Forest resident Paul Runge.
The fate of former Oak Forest resident Paul Runge rests in the hands of Gov. Pat Quinn.
With the death penalty ban on his desk, Quinn has said he will "reflect and pray" in considering whether to lift the moratorium put in place by former Gov. George Ryan, keep it, or convert inmates' sentences to life in prison, according to Illinois Statehouse News.
Runge, now 40, is on death row after being found responsible for the 1997 rapes and murders of a North Side mother and her young daughter.
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Yolanda Gutierrez, 35, and Jessica Muniz, 10, were tortured and assaulted for hours in the same bed in their apartment before Runge cut their throats and set their home on fire. DNA evidence found on the little girl led authorities to Runge, who is suspected in as many as five other murders between 1995 and 1997.
Quinn's decision will come in a few weeks, according to the report.
Find out what's happening in Oak Forestwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Read more about Runge's case on Patch, and read what police remember about Runge, after he turned himself in for the rape of a 14-year-old Oak Forest girl in 1987.
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