Ivy Kelly's Murder Retrial Delayed as Prosecutors Fail to Secure Key Witness

Judge rejects emergency request to restrict public discussion of case; prosecutors consider contempt proceedings against missing witness.

Ivy Kelly's second murder trial was postponed Monday after Cook County prosecutors told a judge they had been unable to serve a subpoena on a key witness in the nearly 27-year-old murder case.

Prosecutors told Judge Michele Pitman that Christopher Lacy, whose statements helped build the original murder case against Kelly, had stopped responding to their calls. Lacy later recanted key allegations implicating Kelly, raising questions about the reliability of evidence used to secure his 2003 conviction.

“We have made efforts to serve Mr. Lacy several times with our investigators, and they’ve been unsuccessful,” a prosecutor told the court. “We have contacted him via phone. Our investigators have spoken to him at his residence, but he has not answered the door.”

Over defense objections, Pitman granted the prosecution's request for a continuance. The bench trial was rescheduled for December 14.

Prosecutors also said they were preparing to open a separate contempt-of-court case against Lacy and seek a rule to show cause for his failure to appear.

Pitman questioned the legal basis for the action because Lacy had not been successfully served with a subpoena. Prosecutors argued that he nevertheless knew about the trial date through direct communications with investigators. The judge said she would consider the matter if prosecutors filed the request.

Prosecutors Say Facebook Posts Threaten a Fair Trial

The hearing began with a different dispute: prosecutors' contention that Facebook posts about Kelly's case were intimidating potential witnesses and jeopardizing the fairness of his retrial. They asked Pitman to enter an emergency decorum order restricting certain public statements about witnesses and anticipated testimony.

“Given the social media posts, given the circus that is occurring outside of this courthouse today, as well as the circus atmosphere being created by these posts, no one is getting a fair trial here,” Assistant Cook County State's Attorney Jennifer Cooper argued. “Witnesses are intimidated and do not want to come to court to provide testimony on this matter.”

The prosecution's motion followed public appeals by Kelly and his supporters urging people to attend the proceedings. The grassroots organization Blocks United Revolutionary Network, known as BURN, held a rally outside the courthouse before the hearing, encouraging supporters to contact Cook County State's Attorney Eileen O'Neill Burke to request dismissal of the charges.

"Stop the retrial...Free Ivy," they chanted.

Cooper linked the advocacy and the online conversations to the reluctance of a witness to appear in court.

“In my conversations with that witness, when he was still answering his phone, which he is now not doing, he indicated to me that he is afraid to come and testify,” Cooper said. “He is intimidated by what is available on the internet. He is worried about what will happen to him if he comes in to provide truthful testimony.”

After Pitman denied the requested restrictions, prosecutors turned to Lacy's absence and formally requested a continuance.

Kelly was convicted of first-degree murder in 2003 for the 1999 shooting death of his friend Joseph Ward in Robbins, Illinois. His conviction was vacated in 2023 following years of postconviction litigation involving allegations of ineffective assistance of counsel and questions about the credibility of prosecution witnesses.

Kelly has maintained his innocence and remains in custody awaiting retrial.

Defense Challenges Claims of Intimidation

Defense attorney Greenberg challenged the prosecution's account, arguing that Kelly did not personally operate the Facebook page cited in the motion and that supporters could publish material under his name without his involvement.

“There's no threats in those posts, there's nothing negative in that,” Greenberg told Pitman. “There's absolutely no reason to enter any order like that.”

He also challenged the prosecution's account of Lacy's reluctance to appear.

“Chris Lacy has never said that he's afraid of Ivy Kelly or he's not coming to these court proceedings,” Greenberg said.

Greenberg told the court that Lacy had expressed uncertainty during conversations with the defense about whether Kelly was responsible for Ward's death. Prosecutors disputed aspects of the defense's account of its communications with Lacy.

Judge: “This Is a Public Process”

Pitman denied the prosecution's emergency motion, finding insufficient evidence that the conduct of attorneys or parties threatened the fairness or integrity of the trial.

She noted that information about witnesses and potential evidence had already surfaced in court filings and public proceedings.

“A lot of this can be found through these public proceedings,” Pitman said. “Witnesses' names have been mentioned through these public proceedings. There's been public documents that have been filed. This is a public process.”

Pitman also observed that she could not control social media activity generally and emphasized that online commentary would not influence her decisions in a bench trial.

“I do not find that the integrity of this process has been threatened in any manner,” she said.

Pitman admonished the parties against improperly discussing witnesses and anticipated testimony on social media.

Former Co-Defendant's Testimony Raises Fifth Amendment Questions

Another dispute arose over Demetrius Hampton, a former co-defendant subpoenaed to testify in Kelly's retrial.

Hampton's attorney told the court that his client is pursuing a postconviction challenge to his own murder conviction and intends to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Prosecutors proposed granting Hampton use immunity, which generally prevents compelled testimony from being used against a witness in a criminal prosecution, subject to exceptions.

Karl Leonard, an attorney with the Exoneration Project representing Hampton, challenged the proposed arrangement, arguing that it could expose his client to a perjury prosecution while jeopardizing his ongoing postconviction proceedings.

“All this does really is two things, Your Honor. It sets a perjury trap for Mr. Hampton when he testifies consistent with his post-conviction position," Leonard said. "It gives them the opportunity to use whatever he testified to here in the post-conviction proceedings.”

Prosecutors disputed Leonard's characterization, arguing that truthful testimony would not expose Hampton to a perjury prosecution and that the proposed immunity would protect against the use of his compelled testimony in a subsequent prosecution, subject to applicable exceptions.

Pitman deferred the dispute until Hampton is called to testify.

Joseph Ward's father also appeared in court Monday under subpoena as a prosecution witness. The judge instructed him to return for the rescheduled proceedings.

Trial Rescheduled for December 14

Kelly's bench trial is now scheduled for Monday, December 14, at 11 a.m. in Courtroom 103 at the Sixth Municipal District courthouse in Markham, Illinois.

The defense demanded trial following the postponement, and Pitman directed counsel to submit the demand in writing.

Kelly, who rejected a time-served plea offer, remains in custody awaiting his second trial.

The question of whether Lacy will appear—and what he might say if he does—remains unresolved.