The person accused of setting Chicago’s beloved “Strolling Man” on fireplace as he slept defenseless on a metropolis avenue will serve practically 50 years in jail after admitting his guilt within the unprovoked deadly assault, prosecutors confirmed Thursday.
Joseph Guardia had a trial tentatively set to start this week within the slaying of Joseph Kromelis, however the 30-year-old Melrose Park man as an alternative accepted a plea deal Wednesday on first-degree homicide costs.
Guardia should serve 100% of his 47-year jail time period and could be in his 70s earlier than he may very well be freed. He’ll obtain credit score, although, for the 881 days he has spent in jail since his arrest.
Kromelis, a distinctively dapper dresser typically seen strolling alone alongside the streets of downtown Chicago, was attacked earlier than 3 a.m. Could 25, 2022, whereas he slept on the pavement within the 400 block of North Decrease Wabash Avenue.
He died a number of months later at age 75.
Throughout this week’s court docket listening to, prosecutors learn a victim-impact assertion from Kromelis’ sister. The girl, Erika “Ricky” Singree, of Alaska, died Sunday simply days after her eightieth birthday. She had been Kromelis’ solely dwelling sibling.
Her daughter, Jami, who additionally lives in Alaska and attended the Prepare dinner County court docket listening to by way of videoconference, stated she typically instructed her mom tales about Kromelis’ affect on Chicagoans.
“My coronary heart is damaged,” the elder Singree wrote in her assertion. “My brother simply liked Chicago. He had his routine of strolling the streets. He wished to be left alone. He by no means harm anybody. He was an angel with wings.”
Kromelis, a former avenue peddler who most popular to maintain to himself, walked town on daily basis and in each form of climate. When a bat-wielding man attacked him in Could 2016, the incident impressed greater than $30,000 in donations and a charity T-shirt drive that raised one other $6,000 to assist Kromelis get again on his ft.
The ultimate, haunting assault on Kromelis in 2022 was captured on video by a close-by resort safety surveillance system. Authorities launched video stills of his attacker exhibiting a big greenback signal tattooed on his cheek, and police arrested Guardia two days later. They stated he was carrying the identical clothes seen within the video.
Guardia instructed police in a recorded interview that he had discovered a cup crammed with gasoline and set a pile of blankets on fireplace, in line with court docket data. Guardia stated he was not conscious that an individual was beneath the blankets, however prosecutors stated Kromelis’ head and decrease legs have been seen.
As for motive, Guardia stated solely that he was “an offended individual.”
Most of the court docket proceedings since his arrest have centered on Guardia’s previous hospitalizations and his psychological well being.
A Tribune evaluation of public data discovered Guardia had been identified with bipolar dysfunction and was often hospitalized for suicidal ideas. He had greater than two dozen arrests in three states associated to allegations of battery, housebreaking, theft, reckless conduct and retail theft.
In a press release, his legal professional with the Prepare dinner County public defender’s workplace stated Guardia had sought a “responsible however mentally ailing” plea however attorneys have been unable to succeed in an settlement.
“Mr. Guardia suffers from psychological sickness and has been receiving therapy off-and-on for the reason that age of 15,” the assertion stated. “He’s at the moment receiving acceptable medicine on the jail and hopes to proceed his therapy in (jail).”
Guardia didn’t make a press release throughout his sentencing, his legal professional stated.
The Tribune interviewed Ricky Singree final 12 months as a part of a prolonged story on Kromelis’ life and his closing weeks. Closest to him in age amongst his siblings, Singree described her brother as sort, soft-spoken and clever. She hadn’t seen a lot of him since she moved to Alaska in 1974, however Singree described him as too proud to ask for assist.
In her posthumous victim-impact assertion, she spoke on to Guardia.
“I hope you’ll be able to stay with your self (for) what you may have completed,” she wrote. “There was no motive to harm an harmless man that wished to relaxation. My brother wished peace, to get up the subsequent day to go on dwelling his life. However you made a alternative and took that from him.
“There can be no extra tales of Joseph Kromelis strolling the streets of Chicago. My beloved brother: relaxation in peace.”
Guardia entered the plea in entrance of Decide Timothy Joyce on the Leighton Legal Courtroom Constructing.
cmgutowski@chicagotribune.com
