The father of the Highland Park parade massacre suspect reported to begin his jail sentence on Wednesday wearing a T-shirt saying “I’m a political pawn,” prompting a Lake County judge to threaten him with contempt of court if he broke court rules again.
Robert Crimo Jr. walked into the Lake County Courthouse wearing the shirt against Judge George Strickland’s decorum rules. The back of the shirt read “Laws, facts, reality.”
By the time Crimo Jr. appeared in the courtroom, the shirt was inside out. But the judge still lambasted him.
“The rules are not negotiable,” Strickland told Crimo Jr. “Did you read the rules?”
“No,” Crimo Jr. replied, holding a lectern, face unshaven and a shoe untied.
“That’s very interesting,” the judge said.
Strickland threatened to hold Crimo Jr. in contempt of court if he broke the rules again. …
After the hearing, Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said Crimo Jr.’s decision to make a statement with the T-shirt raises questions “whether he understands what he has done.”
“I believe that his shirt today shows that he is not taking this seriously, that he is not remorseful for his acts which caused so much pain and damage,” Rinehart told reporters. “I think we’ve learned a lot about how Mr. Crimo looks at this case.”
Crimo Jr.’s attorney, George Gomez, declined to comment.