Pantagraph.com Weather forecast, local radar and more
NewsSaturday, March 29, 2008 1:21 AM CDT
Comments Comments (2) | E-mail this page E-mail this page | Print this page Print this page | Enlarge type Enlarge type | Reduce type Reduce type | Search archives Search archives | RSS RSS feeds | Add to My Yahoo! Add to My Yahoo!
Hillenbrand denied parole again in '70 double murder
By Greg Stanmar
gregstanmar@comcast.net
Advertisement

STREATOR — Henry Hillenbrand was again denied parole this week for a 1970 Streator double murder and will not be entitled to ask again for three years.

Hillenbrand, now 60, broke into the home of George Evans, 22, with whom his ex-girlfriend, Patricia Pence, 20, was staying, Prosecutors said.

Hillenbrand shot Evans while he was still in bed and then attacked Pence with the butt of a gun, prosecutors said. He then tried dragging her down the street, but she broke away and tried to run before he shot her several times in the back, prosecutors said.

Shortly after Hillenbrand pleaded guilty to the double murder, he escaped from the LaSalle County jail before he could be transported to prison.

He was caught in 1983 when he tried to smuggle a bear skin rug into the country from Canada. He had been living in Missouri under the name Tom Elliot.

He has been in Menard Correctional Center since then, serving concurrent sentences of 150 and 240 years. Under current law he could have gotten life without parole or the death penalty, but under the old sentencing guidelines he is eligible for parole every three years.

“The lives of innocent people were snuffed out for no reason,” Milton Maxwell of the Prisoner Review Board wrote of the decision to deny parole. The murders “have left a deep and indelible scar on the family.”

A petition opposing parole was circulated in Streator by family members of both victims. They also testified in the parole hearing in Pontiac.

Maxwell noted that Hillenbrand had shown some improvement in behavior but “that is not enough” to overcome the brutal nature of the crime.

Video
Most commented stories
Browse online archives
Recent issues:
Reader comments on this story - 2 total

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

cats55ire wrote on Mar 30, 2008 12:03 AM:

" this moron is scum and should not see the light of day EVER! "

clarkbar wrote on Mar 29, 2008 9:51 AM:

" It's a shame that the families have to appear or write an objection to this scum being eligible for parole every three years. He shouldn't be eligible for parole except every ten years at least. They have to relive the heartbreak he caused. "
Add your own comments

Please read the rules before posting comments.

You must be logged in to leave comments.
If you don't have a member ID, please register.

*Member ID:
*Password:
Remember login?
(requires cookies)
  Forgot Your Password?
 
Lee Enterprises Customer Service | 301 W. Washington St., PO Box 2907, Bloomington, IL 61701-2907 | Ph. 309-829-9000 | 800-747-7323
Copyright © 2008, Pantagraph Publishing Co. and Lee Enterprises. All rights reserved. | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy