BRIAN CARRICK - 17 yo (2002) - Johnsburg IL

Blood on the floor and blood on the box are clues in the disappearance of Brian Carrick. But were they discovered too late?
A small town's deadly secret is a cold case mystery complete with a teenager who vanishes from work, never to be seen again.
This is the story of Brian Carrick.

"Losing a child leaves a whole in your heart that will never close," said Terry Carrick, Carrick's mother.
On December 20, 2002 Brian Carrick disappeared.
"I just had a gut feeling something was wrong," Carrick said.
But a missing 17-year-old didn't send off many alarms, until police made a gruesome discovery.
"Blood on the floor, blood on the boxes, blood splattered," recalls Johnsburg Police Chief Ken Rydberg.
That blood was found in a produce freezer at Val's Foods in Johnsburg where Brian worked as a stock boy.
A day after he disappeared, another worker discovered the pool of blood.
But a manager who reportedly believed the blood came from meat and was
unaware that Brian was missing, told him to mop it up.
It was cleaned up at least twice before the police were told about any blood in the cooler.
DNA results determined the blood belonged to Brian, but after chasing
hundreds of leads and interviewing dozens of people, police have
reached a dead end.
Four years later and there are no arrests and no body. Although presumed dead, Brian has never been found.
There are 14 children in the Carrick family; Brian is the youngest boy. Four
older brothers served in the military, including one in Iraq. Back
then, Terry Carrick told CBS 2, she had a fear of 'missing in action.'
She said she didn't expect something like that to happen in her back
yard.
The ordeal has taken a toll on the family. Some siblings find it difficult to visit the family home.
"I can't blame them," said Carrick. "It's not a pleasant sight to look
across the street to the store everyday knowing that somebody through
maliciousness or viciousness or whatever reason took a 17-year-old's
life."
Community support has been tremendous. Some 1,000 people
showed up at a vigil held in the bitter cold shortly after Brian
disappeared.
The family believes more than one person is keeping this horrible secret.
"Oh, I believe there's several people who know what happened," Carrick said.
"Don't be a snitch. That's not the way life works. We are our brother's
keepers," added Carrick.
And police say a little more information could finally crack this case.
"We're just waiting for that one link to fall in place," said Rydberg. "I made
a promise to Terry Carrick that this would be on our minds all the time
and to this day it still is."
If you have any information, call the Johnsburg Police Department at (815) 385-6024.

A McHenry County judge tossed out perjury charges Wednesday against
a suburban man accused of lying about the still-unsolved 2002
disappearance of Brian Carrick, 17.

Mario Casciaro, 26, was on trial on charges of lying to the grand
jury probing the fate of Carrick, of far northwest suburban Johns- burg.

Carrick vanished from the grocery store where he worked on Dec. 20, 2002.

Judge Sharon Prather ruled that McHenry County prosecutors hadn't
proved that Casciaro lied when he denied telling a friend that he knew
how Carrick had been murdered and where his body was hidden.

Prosecutors think Carrick was slain at the grocery store, citing DNA
tests that confirmed that Carrick's blood was found in a cooler there.

Terry Carrick believed in the redemptive value of suffering.

It was that belief and deep faith in God that helped her deal with
the 2002 disappearance of her 17-year-old son Brian, who police believe
was murdered.

And it was that faith she turned to when she was diagnosed with leukemia and lung cancer this summer.

“I saw her a week ago, and she was in a lot of pain,” said Cindy
Nusser, a longtime friend of Terry Carrick’s. “But she was still the
same feisty, Irish, happy person. She was resigned, but not in a
giving-up way, but in a hopeful way of accepting God’s will.”

Terry Carrick, 65, died Saturday morning at University of Illinois Medical Center.

The mother of 14 children, Carrick was a longtime Johnsburg resident
who was heavily involved with St. John the Baptist Catholic Church.

After Brian's disappearance, Carrick continued to search for answers, but she did not allow what happened to rule her life.

“My mom knew [the police] were working their hardest on the case,”
said Bridget Carrick, her 19-year-old daughter. “She did find peace
with it. It wasn’t consuming her life.”

Brian Carrick, a Johnsburg High School senior, last was seen walking
into Val’s Food Inc., a grocery store, on Dec. 20, 2002, where he
worked as a stock boy. Brian Carrick’s blood later was found in a
produce cooler and in boxes from a trash compactor at the store.
Although no one has been charged with killing Carrick, two people have
faced charges related to the case.

Robert Render, 23, has been charged with concealing a homicide.

In August, perjury charges against Mario Casciaro were thrown out by
McHenry County Judge Sharon Prather. Casciaro, who was 26, was accused
of lying to a grand jury after he denied having a conversation about
the case.

“I think she had a sense of forgiveness for anyone who was
responsible for her son’s death,” Nusser said. “I also think she
internalized a lot of suffering from what had happened.”

In the years since Brian’s disappearance, Bridget Carrick said her mother was able to keep herself busy with her children.

And she stayed active in the community, offering assistance to others.

When Cindy Nusser’s husband, Len, became ill and later died, Terry
Carrick was there supporting the Nussers. The Johnsburg community
hosted several fundraisers to help the family with medical bills.

“She was way too young to die,” Nusser said. “She was a very loving woman. You couldn’t ask for a more loyal friend.”

Nusser said her friend was disappointed after she found out about
her illness that she would not be able to spend more time with her
husband, William, in her later years.

"She had a heavy heart about that," Nusser said. "She thought that she was going to be able to stay home and enjoy Bill."

Bridget Carrick said that services had not been planned for her
mother; the family is waiting for a sibling to return from school in
Venezuela. She said that a service likely would be in late November or
early December.

“She gave me 13 wonderful people who are a huge part of my life,”
Bridget Carrick said. “She was a very strong person, and it came from
her faith in God. She was a person who was adamant about everything she
did in life.”

Charge dropped — for now — in concealment case

Prosecutors dismissed the case Friday against a McHenry man accused of
concealing the homicide of missing Johnsburg teen Brian Carrick, but
they said they are hopeful they’ll refile charges after further
investigation.

For now, though, Robert Render, 24, is free of a charge of concealing a
homicidal death that claimed he helped clean up evidence that Carrick
was slain Dec. 20, 2002, the night he vanished after last being seen at
a grocery store where he worked.

"We think there are a couple of issues with the case," Assistant McHenry County State’s Attorney Michael Combs said.

"We want to complete the investigation and put our best case forward.
As the investigation goes forward, we hope to reinstate charges."

Combs said he could not fully discuss those issues because of the
pending investigation, but he indicated the fact Carrick’s body has
never been recovered was a factor.

Carrick, a 17-year-old Johnsburg High School student, disappeared seven years ago from Val’s Foods.

Render, who authorities believe was one of the last known people to see
him alive, was accused of cleaning up what may have been blood in the
store the next day. He denied the allegations.

His attorney, George Kililis, said Friday he knows dismissing the
charge was "painful" for prosecutors, but it was the right decision.

"I know they desperately want this case resolved and to hold those responsible accountable," Kililis said.

"But I believe in my client’s innocence and think this decision was the correct one."

Kililis said that without a body, authorities cannot establish a time of death.

And without a time of death, they cannot prove Render or anyone else acted to conceal a homicide.

Combs said Carrick’s family and Johnsburg Police Chief Ken Rydberg were
informed of prosecutors’ decision before Friday’s dismissal.

The charge against Render was a Class 3 felony punishable by two to five years in prison.

This is the second bitter bill in five months for Carrick’s family and law enforcement trying to solve his disappearance.

In August, Carrick’s former supervisor at Val’s, Mario Casciaro, 26, of
McHenry, was acquitted of perjury charges alleging he lied to a grand
jury when he denied knowledge of what happened to Carrick.

A Lake County man linked to
the 2002 disappearance of a 17-year-old boy has struck a deal with
county prosecutors to testify against suspects in the presumed murder,
multiple sources familiar with the investigation said Thursday.


Under the deal, Shane Lamb, 25, of Lake Bluff, would
receive immunity for his undisclosed role in killing of Brian Carrick,
but instead receive a short prison sentence on an unrelated drug case,
according to an official who has seen the agreement.


Sources did not indicate on the record who Lamb would testify against, but an indictment could be forthcoming.


McHenry County State's Attorney Louis Bianchi said he
could not comment on the matter because it is a pending investigation.
Lamb attorney Zaid Abdallah could not be reached for comment.


Carrick, of Johnsburg, vanished Dec. 20, 2002, from his
workplace, Val's Foods, a grocery store near his home. Police said
traces of Carrick's blood and other indications of a struggle were
found in the store, but there was otherwise no sign of the teen.


Lamb was linked to the case about five years later when
Carrick's former supervisor at Val's, Mario A. Casciaro, 26, of
McHenry, was indicted on perjury charges alleging he lied to a grand
jury investigating the disappearance.


During a trial on the charges last year, former friend
Alan Lippert testified that Casciaro admitted he and Lamb played a part
in Carrick's disappearance.


"I asked him, 'Is it true that you told (Lamb) to kill
Brian?'" Lippert testified. "He said it wasn't even like that. He said
that Brian owed him money and he told (Lamb) to scare him and that
something happened, it got out of hand and there was an accident."


Casciaro denied ever making those statements and was found not guilty after the trial.


A second man, Robert Render, 24, of McHenry, also was
charged with concealing a homicidal death in connection with the case,
but prosecutors dismissed those charges last month, citing a need for
further investigation.


Lamb has been in the McHenry County jail since April on
charges of unlawful delivery and unlawful possession of cocaine
charges. He is scheduled to face trial in March on the felony
allegations. If convicted on both counts, he could be sentenced to 15
years in prison.

A Lake County man reportedly ready to testify against others in
connection with the 2002 disappearance and suspected murder of a
Johnsburg teen pleaded guilty to an unrelated drug charge Tuesday with
no mention of an immunity deal sources say he recently struck with
prosecutors.
Shane A. Lamb, 25, of Lake Bluff, was sentenced to six years in
prison after admitting to an unlawful possession of cocaine charge
stemming from a 2008 drug investigation in Spring Grove.
When prompted by the judge that accepted the plea deal, Assistant
McHenry County State’s Attorney Michael Combs said there were no other
conditions to the plea agreement other than the prosecutor’s office’s
dismissal of related drug charges and the 6-year term.
State’s Attorney Louis Bianchi later said he could not address
reports that Lamb, linked both in court documents and trial testimony
to the 2002 disappearance of Brian Carrick, has agreed to testify
against others involved in that matter.
“We’re still pursuing the death investigation of Brian Carrick,” Bianchi said.
Carrick, then 17, vanished Dec. 20, 2002, from Val’s Foods, a
Johnsburg grocery store where he worked. Police said they found traces
of his blood and other indications of a struggle inside the business,
but no other sign of the high school student.
Multiple sources familiar with the investigation said last week that
Lamb recently reached a deal with county prosecutors in which he would
receive immunity for his role in the killing in exchange for his
testimony against at least one other suspect.
Lamb publicly was connected to the case in 2007 when Carrick’s
former supervisor at Val’s, Mario A. Casciaro, 26, of McHenry, was
indicted on perjury charges alleging he lied to a grand jury
investigating what happened to Carrick.
During a trial last year, former friend Alan Lippert testified that
Casciaro admitted he and Lamb played a part in the disappearance.
“I asked him, ‘Is it true that you told (Lamb) to kill Brian?’” Lippert testified.
“He said it wasn’t even like that. He said that Brian owed him money
and he told (Lamb) to scare him and that something happened, it got out
of hand and there was an accident.”
Casciaro denied ever making those statements and was found not guilty.
Lamb, who has been in the McHenry County jail since his April arrest
on the drug charges, could be free in less than two years with his time
already served and likely day-for-day credit for good behavior while in
prison.

For years, McHenry
County authorities tried to connect the dots in the case of a teenager
who'd cashed his paycheck at work, bought a pizza then never returned
home after heading out again.Investigators long suspected Brian
Carrick's December 2002 disappearance resulted from a dispute related
to his job at a Johnsburg grocery store. And they even charged two
former co-workers, one with perjury and the other with concealing
Carrick's death, though no convictions followed.Then another
former co-worker with a rap sheet got caught up in a drug case. In
return for a reduced prison sentence and immunity from prosecution in
Carrick's death, the man provided some details to investigators,
authorities said Saturday.That, they said, helped lead to
Thursday's indictment of Mario Casciaro, at the time a fellow shelf
stocker whose family partly owned the grocery store, on charges of
first-degree murder and concealment of a homicidal death.Police
"are still investigating others that may be involved," Johnsburg Police
Chief Ken Rydberg said Saturday. "The investigation will continue."Carrick
was 17 when he disappeared, the 11th child in a family of 14. His
siblings are relieved murder charges finally have been brought."I
was in a complete state of shock," said sister Bridget Carrick, 19, who
saw her brother after he came home with the pizza. "It's just kind of
fascinating. One of those things that after it hits a certain point you
don't really think anything is going to happen anymore."The
siblings, however, are saddened that their mother, Terry Carrick,
didn't live long enough to see it happen. She held candlelit vigils and
memorials and called authorities over the years, never letting the
community forget the unsolved case. She died of cancer in November."It was her primary focus until she passed away," said William Carrick, her husband.Brian Carrick worked as a stock boy at Val's Foods, which was part-owned by the Casciaro family at the time, investigators said.
Shortly after Carrick's
disappearance five days before Christmas 2002, investigators found
blood inside the store's produce storage space and on a trash
compactor. A state police crime lab later confirmed it belonged to
Brian Carrick, family and investigators have said.In 2007,
authorities charged Casciaro with perjury in relation to the Carrick
case. Prosecutors alleged that Casciaro lied to investigators when he
denied telling a friend that he directed a man to scare Carrick and
that things got out of hand. Casciaro also denied saying that Carrick's
body was initially buried locally, then moved, dismembered and thrown
into a river in Iowa, according to the 2007 indictment. Carrick's body
has never been found.While Casciaro was found not guilty on the perjury charges in August, investigators kept at it.In
2008, Robert Render, 24, another co-worker of Carrick at the time of
his disappearance, was arrested and charged with concealing a homicidal
death. Those charges were dropped in January 2009.Prosecutors
recently a struck a deal with Shane Lamb, who faced unrelated charges
in a drug case. In the perjury indictment, Lamb was named as the man
Casciaro allegedly directed to scare Carrick.Casciaro, 26, was being held on $5 million bail in the McHenry County Jail. His attorney could not be reached.The
Casciaro family now owns a grocery store in Fox Lake. "There (are) a
million things I'd like to say, but no, I don't have any comment," said
brother Eugene Casciaro on Saturday. "It's a tough day for the family."Over
the years, the Carricks have received support from people around the
world, including prayers at churches as far away as South Africa and
novenas said in Rome for the family.The family still hopes for more answers about Brian's disappearance."At
this point there is a lot of assumption and rumor and that bothers me,"
Bridget Carrick said. "At this point it is not about revenge or blame.
A lot of lives are damaged from all of this."

The mother of a McHenry County teen who disappeared more than seven years ago held candlelit
vigils and memorials over the years, never letting the community forget
the unsolved case.
But Terry Carrick died in November, 3 months before authorities
charged a suspect in the slaying of her son, Brian, who disappeared Dec
20, 2002 and whose body has never been found.
"It was her primary focus until she passed away," said William Carrick, her husband of 37 years.
Authorities on Friday charged Mario Casciaro, 26, a former co-worker with Brian Carrick at Val's Food's grocery store in Johnsburg, with first-degree murder.
McHenry County authorities said they recently received new information that lead to Casciaro's arrest, and Johnsburg Police Chief Ken Rydberg said there could be additional arrests.
Police "are still investigating others that may be involved," Rydberg said. "The investigation will continue."
Authorities would not divulge the new information but said it came
from one of Casciaro's former co-workers, Shane Lamb, in exchange for a
reduced prison sentence on drug charges. Lamb, who also has served
time for aggravated battery, is currently at the Stateville
Correctional Facility, according to the Illinois Department of
Corrections website.
A grand jury on Thursday indicted Casciaro on charges of first-degree murder and concealment of a homicidal death.
The indictment alleges that Casciaro, "or one whose conduct he is
legally accountable for, while committing the forcible felony offenses
of intimidation, unlawful restraint and mob action, struck Brian in the
head and thereby caused his death," according to a release from McHenry
County State's Attorney Louis Bianchi. Carrick's family said they have
no idea why Casciaro would harm their son, but investigators on
Saturday said the dispute was over money.
Brian Carrick was a junior at Johnsburg
High School and the the 11th child in a family of 14. About 6:15 on the
night he disappeared--a Friday--he cashed his $150 paycheck at Val's--
just down the road from his home at 4017 N. Johnsburg Rd--and bought a pizza, investigators said.
He told a co-worker he planned to rent a movie at a nearby video
store and would be at home for the rest of the night. His youngest
sister, Bridget, then 12, said she recalled seeing him at home putting
the pizza in the refrigerator and that he went back out.
But her brother never made it to the video store or returned home, said Bridget, now 19.
It was just five days before Christmas and five Carrick siblings who still
lived at home were waiting for the others to arrives. His parents
became alarmed the next day after realizing he hadn't come home and he
didn't report to work later that day.
Two days after he disappeared, a Sunday, investigators found blood
inside the store's produce storage space and on a trash compactor; a
state police crime lab later confirmed it was Brian Carrick's, family
and investigators have said.
Over the years, the family has received support from people in their small McHenry
County town and from around the world, including prayers at churches as
far away as South Africa and novenas said in Rome for the family.
The Johnsburg Police, the FBI and McHenry
County state's attorney office have followed hundreds of leads, but no
body has ever been found. There have been many rumors floating around
the small town, including that the boy's body had been buried in the
woods or dumped into a river.
Last August, Casciaro was found not guilty of three counts of
perjury in relation to Carrick's disappearance; six other perjury
charges were dropped. In that case, the McHenry
County prosecutors alleged that Casciaro lied when he denied telling a
friend, Allan Lippert, that he directed a man to scare Carrick and that
things got out of hand. He also denied saying that Carrick's body was
initially buried locally, then moved, dismembered and thrown into a
river in Iowa, according to the indictment.
In 2008, Robert Render, 24, another co-worker of Carrick at the time
of his disappearance, was arrested and charged with concealing a
homicidal death. Those charges were dropped in January 2009.
Carrick was last seen in the evening of Dec. 20, 2002, in Val's
Foods, where he was a stock boy along with Casciaro, investigators and
family members said. The grocery store was owned by the Casciaro family
at the time. The family no longer owns that store and now owns Val's
grocery store in Fox Lake
Eugene Casciaro, Mario's brother was reached at the Fox Lake store Saturday morning.
"There (are) a million things I'd like to say, but no, I don't have
any comment," Eugene Casciaro said. "It's a tough day for the family."
Mario Casciaro is being held on $5 million bond in the McHenry County jail and his next court date is March 5th. His attorney could not be reached.
Brian Carrick's family still hopes for further answers about his disappearance.
"At this point there is a lot of assumption and rumor and that
bothers me," said Bridget Carrick. "At this point it is not about
revenge or blame. A lot of lives are damaged from all of this."
Bridget Carrick moved back into the family home last August when her
mother fell ill. She had just returned home when her father told her
the news.
"I didn't say anything for about a minute, I was in a complete state
of shock," she said "It's just kind of fascinating. One of those things
that after it hits a certain point you don't really think anything is
going to happen anymore."

Mario Casciaro’s attorney wants more details about the murder
charges alleging that Casciaro was involved in a 17-year-old Johnsburg
boy’s 2002 disappearance.

Casciaro, 26, of McHenry, formally pleaded not guilty to five counts
of murder and a single count of concealing a homicide Friday. The
indictment alleged that Casciaro, or someone for whose conduct he was
legally responsible, hit Brian Carrick on the head while committing the
offenses of intimidation, mob action and unlawful restraint.

“I want to know what the intimidation is,” defense attorney William
Gibbs said outside the courtroom. “I want to know what the mob action
is. I need to know the facts that surround the offense.”

Gibbs also requested details about the person for whose conduct
Casciaro might have been responsible. Prosecutors said Friday morning
that they had not yet determined how they would respond.

Carrick, a Johnsburg High School junior, last was seen about 6:45
p.m. Dec. 20, 2002, walking into Val’s Foods across the street from his
Johnsburg house. His blood was found in a produce cooler and in boxes
from a trash compactor at the store, where he worked as a stock boy. At
that time, Casciaro’s family members were partial owners of the store.

Gibbs also indicated that prosecutors had given him most of the information about the criminal investigation.

Court records show that information includes a Feb. 2 videotaped
interview with Robert Render, who had been accused of concealing
Carrick’s homicide until prosecutors dropped the felony charge Jan. 15.


Render remained in Lake County Jail on Friday, unable to post 10
percent of his $250,000 bail. Charges of residential burglary, theft,
retail theft, and escape and resisting a peace officer are pending
against him in Lake County, court records show.

Gibbs also received video of two interviews with Shane Lamb, 25, who
has been promised immunity in exchange for his testimony against
Casciaro and any other cases surrounding Carrick’s disappearance.

Another man, Alan Lippert, testified in August that Casciaro had
told him what happened to Carrick. Casciaro told Lamb to “scare”
Carrick over an outstanding debt and “things got out of hand,” Lippert
claimed that Casciaro had told him after a night of drinking.

Casciaro denied making those statements, was charged with perjury, and acquitted in August.

The murder case is next due in court March 19. Casciaro remained in
McHenry County Jail on Friday, unable to post 10 percent of his $5
million bail.

A Fox Lake business owner
accused in the killing of a Johnsburg teen who vanished more than seven
years ago formally denied the charges Friday as his defense attorney
filed court papers seeking more details on the case.


Mario Casciaro, 26, pleaded not guilty to five counts
of first-degree murder and asked for a jury trial on allegations
stemming from the Dec. 20, 2002, disappearance of 17-year-old Brian
Carrick from the Johnsburg grocery store where they worked.


The charges claim Casciaro, or someone for whom he was
legally accountable, caused Carrick's death during acts of unlawful
restraint, intimidation and mob action. Casciaro also is accused of
concealment of a homicidal death.


His attorney, William Gibbs, filed a motion Friday for
a bill of particulars seeking more specifics from prosecutors on
Casciaro's alleged crimes. Among the details he wants are the exact
date and time of the murder, what acts of intimidation, unlawful
restraint and mob action occurred and the name and address of the
person for whom Casciaro was legally accountable.


"I need to know the facts surrounding these offenses," Gibbs said.


Assistant McHenry County State's Attorney Michael Combs
said he will review the request before deciding whether to object or
comply.


Prosecutors this week turned over to Casciaro's defense
much of their evidence in the case, including hundreds of pages of
police reports and dozens of witness names.


Among that evidence, documents show, are two videotaped
statements from Lake Bluff resident Shane Lamb, a longtime suspect in
the disappearance who, according to numerous law enforcement sources,
has cut an immunity deal with prosecutors to testify against Casciaro.


According to testimony in a related perjury case
against Casciaro, the McHenry man told a friend he asked Lamb to scare
Carrick and things got out of hand. Casciaro denied making the
statement and was acquitted of perjury.


Casciaro, who has been held at the McHenry County jail
on a $5 million bond since his arrest last week, is scheduled to return
to court March 19. If found guilty of the murder, he could face between
20 years and life in prison.

A new defense attorney is questioning why McHenry County prosecutors
have charged a former co-worker with murdering 17-year-old Brian Carrick
in 2002 while the two worked together in a neighborhood grocery store.A
key problem, attorney Brian Telander said today: "There's no scientific
evidence he's even dead." Carrick, a high school junior, vanished on Dec. 20, 2002, while
working at Val’s Foods in far northwest suburban Johnsburg. His body has
never been found.Last month, Mario Casciarro, a former
co-worker, was indicted on charges of first-degree murder and concealing
a homicide in Carrick’s death.Casciaro, 26, was charged in 2007
with perjury, accused of lying to investigators about Carrick’s
disappearance. But he was acquitted in a trial last year.Then,
last month, Casciaro was charged with murder.“I’m having a hard
time understanding how they had enough evidence to charge this
defendant,” Telander said after a brief hearing in McHenry County
Circuit Court. “This is a case that just doesn’t make any sense to me.”Casciaro,
who remains jailed on $5 million bail, has pleaded not guilty. If
convicted, he could face a possible life sentence.During
Casciaro’s perjury trial last year, a former acquaintance testified that
Casciaro admitted that he and another man had been involved in
Carrick’s disappearance. Casciaro, though, denied implicating
himself in Carrick’s disappearance, and he ultimately was acquitted of
the charge by a McHenry County judge.Authorities have said they
found traces of Carrick’s blood in a grocery store cooler — along with
signs of a struggle — but they have little other physical evidence that
might indicate what happened to the teen.McHenry County State’s
Attorney Louis Bianchi declined to comment today.Carrick’s
father, William, and one of his sisters were in court for the hearing in
Woodstock. Family members are pleased that someone finally has been
charged with murder, Carrick’s father said.“There was a great
sense of relief,” William Carrick said outside the courtroom.

William Carrick could easily
walk to Val's Foods from his home across the street, but he hasn't done
so in seven years, not since his son Brian disappeared from the grocery,
leaving behind only a trace of blood.
Carrick can't bring himself to go to the store in Johnsburg,
where Brian was last seen five days before Christmas in 2002, so he
drives 15 minutes to shop in Fox Lake or McHenry.

After all the grief, Carrick said the coming trial of the man accused
of killing his son -- both were stock boys at the grocery -- could
provide some closure for his family as well as for the community. A
trial date could be set Friday.
"I just think it is time to put this behind us," Carrick said. "It's
been too long as it is."



Mario Casciaro, 26, has been charged with
first-degree murder in the death of Brian Carrick, who was 17 when he
disappeared. His body was never found. Casciaro is being held on $5
million bail.
Both families are well known in the McHenry
County community of some 7,000 residents. At the time of Carrick's
disappearance, Casciaro's family partly owned the grocery, the anchor
tenant in a strip mall. The large Carrick clan -- Brian was the 11th
child in a family of 14 -- lived across Johnsburg
Road in a double A-frame home with black trim.
Above the store's entrance, a U.S. flag recently rippled in the
breeze between a half-dozen yellow-and-blue flags, the colors of the
local high school, where Carrick was a junior. Muddy farm fields lie on
one side of the school, acres of subdivisions on the other.
Walter Pekovitch manages the bowling alley just down the road from
Val's and like many others in town says he remains shocked and
bewildered by the killing.
"I didn't think anything like that could happen in a town like this,"
he said. "I have a 2-year-old daughter, and to have her taken ... I
can't imagine how I'd go on."
While many say they're waiting for the trial to unfold and are
withholding judgment, they also hope it will help remove what one
resident described as a cloud hanging over the village.
"I think there's a feeling some relief is coming," said Village
President Ed Hetterman. "The town's taking a deep breath."
Just how that courtroom drama will play out is open to conjecture
considering the case's complicated legal history. One problem the
prosecution will have to confront is Carrick's missing body, experts said.
"Juries like to hear a story about what makes you think this is the
guy," said Andrew Leipold, a law professor at University of Illinois and
co-director of the school's criminal law program. "The fewer normal
pieces that are there, the more work the prosecutor has to do to tell
the story to the jury."
Investigators confirmed that at about 6:15 p.m. on the day he was
last seen, Brian Carrick walked into Val's Food's to cash his $150
paycheck and bought a pizza. Initial reports said he told co-workers he
planned to rent a movie at the video store about a block-and-a-half down
the road and would be at home for the rest of the night.
His youngest sister, Bridget, now 19, recalled she saw him come back
home, where he ate a slice of pizza, but he left again later that evening.
Shortly after Carrick went missing, investigators found blood inside
the store's produce storage space and on a trash compactor. A state
police crime lab later confirmed it belonged to Brian Carrick, family
and investigators have said.
Investigators long believed that the teen's disappearance resulted
from a dispute with a co-worker, though prosecutors have declined to say
what it might have involved.
Authorities in 2007 charged Casciaro with perjury in the case,
alleging that he lied to investigators when he denied telling a friend
that he directed a man to scare Carrick and that things got out of hand.

According to the 2007 indictment, Casciaro denied saying that the
body had been buried locally, then dismembered and thrown into a river in Iowa.
Although Casciaro was found not guilty of the perjury charge,
investigators kept pursuing leads. A year later, in 2008, a former
co-worker of Carrick's was charged with concealing a homicidal death,
but the charges were later dropped.
Most recently, another former co-worker who got caught up in a drug
case agreed to testify, according to a source close to the
investigation. In return for a reduced prison sentence and immunity from
prosecution in Carrick's death, the man provided some details to
investigators that led to the latest indictment against Casciaro, the source said.
A judge issued a gag order after prosecutors objected to statements
made by Casciaro's defense attorney, Brian Telander. But prior to the
order, Telander told the Tribune he questioned the state's case against Casciaro.
"I'm having a hard time understanding how they ever had enough
evidence to charge this defendant," he said.
The testimony of the former employee who was granted immunity likely
will be scrutinized harshly by the defense and by the jury because of
the plea deal, but it can still be effective, said Leipold, the law professor.
"Just because he's been given an incentive doesn't mean he's not
telling the truth," he said.
The Casciaro family now owns a grocery store in Fox
Lake. They declined to comment for this report.
For his part, William Carrick has stayed put since his son's
disappearance, even as all but one of his remaining children have left
the large family home. His wife, Terry, died in November. He said he has
no hard feelings against anyone involved in his son's death.
He is grateful for the support he has received from the community and
recalled a candlelight vigil held shortly after his son disappeared,
where more than 2,000 people stood in 10-degree temperatures to pray and
show their support. A year later, a memorial service was held for Brian
at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Johnsburg
where the family attended.
"I had never seen the church that full," Carrick said. "It could have
been Easter or Christmas. It was standing-room only."
If and when the case is settled to his satisfaction, he may even
resume shopping at Val's.
"It is stupid," he said, "to have to get in the car and drive to a
grocery store when you could walk across the street."

CASE ID 10CF000229
TITLE PEOPLE VS. CASCIARO, MARIO A

FUTURE COURT EVENTS
EVENT DATE EVENT TIME LOCATION ROOM TYPE JUDGE
05/24/2011 9:00AM McHenry County Government Center 304 STATUS - TRIAL DATE PRATHER, SHARON
http://68.21.116.46/wow65/runApp?pj_savedHTML=1303960024994

EVENT DATE EVENT TIME LOCATION ROOM TYPE JUDGE
07/28/2011 9:00AM McHenry County Government Center 304 STATUS - TRIAL DATE PRATHER, SHARON L.
10/03/2011 10:00AM McHenry County Government Center 304 TRIAL - JURY PRATHER, SHARON L.


http://68.21.116.46/wow65/runApp?pj_savedHTML=1310567450397

9/15/2011 9:16 PM
Johnsburg murder trial postponed

The long-awaited murder trial of Mario Casciaro has been postponed one more time, officials said.
McHenry County Judge Sharon Prather agreed to put off Casciaro’s trial until Jan. 23, pushing it back from its original start date of Oct. 3, the McHenry County state’s attorney’s office confirmed Thursday.

The 28-year-old McHenry man faces five counts of first-degree murder in the disappearance and presumed death of Johnsburg teen Brian Carrick. Casciaro, who was arrested on the charges in February 2010, is free on $5 million bail while awaiting trial.
His lawyer requested the postponement in court Wednesday, claiming he was having trouble locating witnesses originally expected to be used for Casciaro’s defense, and because the state’s attorney’s office had not turned over some documents the defense needed.
Carrick, 17, last was seen Dec. 20, 2002, walking into Val’s Foods in Johnsburg, where he worked and Casciaro was his supervisor. His body has not been found.
The murder indictment alleges Casciaro or someone for whom he was legally responsible killed Carrick.
According to court documents filed by McHenry County prosecutors last year, Carrick was killed over a drug debt. The documents suggest Carrick and Casciaro had an arrangement in which the teen would sell drugs supplied by Casciaro and then turn over a portion of the proceeds. When Carrick failed to turn over the money it led to a confrontation and ultimately his death, prosecutors wrote.
The Johnsburg store has since been closed, but Casciaro’s family now owns Val’s Fresh Market in Fox Lake.


Read more: http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20110915/news/709159796/#ixzz1ZpvSeywD

More than nine years after his teenage son disappeared from the McHenry County grocery store where he worked, William Carrick still is looking for answers.

He hopes he’ll find some beginning next week when the man charged with murdering 17-year-old Brian Carrick stands trial for his son’s 2002 disappearance and presumed death.

“I don’t harbor any animosity or want any revenge,” said the 64-year-old Carrick, who still lives in the family’s sprawling frame house in Johnsburg, a town of about 7,000 people in northern McHenry County. “I’d like to know what happened.”

But the unusual trial of 28-year-old Mario Casciaro — who worked with Brian at Val’s Foods — may not provide the ending for which Carrick has long waited.

Brian’s body had never been found, though some of his blood was discovered in a storage cooler at the store, which sits just across the street from the house where Carrick and his late wife, Terry, raised their 14 children.

The case against Casciaro appears to hinge largely on statements he purportedly made to a friend about Carrick’s disappearance and the testimony of another friend who allegedly implicated Casciaro in the killling, court records indicate, though a gag order prevents attorneys from discussing the case.

Those statements allegedly indicate Casciaro ordered a friend to scare Carrick into paying money he owed Casciaro for drug purchases, court records show.

And in another strange twist, Casciaro already has been acquitted of perjury charges for allegedly lying to the grand jury probing Brian’s Dec. 20, 2002 disappearance.

Those felony charges were based on statements Casciaro made in which he denied knowing anything about Carrick’s disappearance or where his body might be, according to court documents.

That 2009 acquittal could help bolster Casciaro’s defense that he wasn’t involved in Brian’s disappearance — but only if defense attorneys manage to find a way to present that to jurors hearing the trial.

“Ordinarily, it would be brutally hard to bring that in,” said DePaul University law professor Leonard Cavise.

Casciaro’s attorneys also could argue there’s no proof Carrick is even dead, particularly since the amount of blood found in the store isn’t believed to be enough to prove Carrick suffered fatal injuries there.

There is no other physical evidence — specifically his body — to prove the teen is dead.

But murder prosecutions have succeeded even without a victim’s body, experts said.

“The blood evidence is surely going to help,” said Ronald Allen, a Northwestern University law professor. “You don’t need a body to prove a death occurred.”

Prosecutors may face problems with a key witness, Shane Lamb, who purportedly tied Casciaro to the killing. Lamb has a string of felony convictions and agreed to testify after cutting a deal with prosecutors that saw him receive a six-year prison term on a drug case but didn’t hold him responsible for any actions related to Carrick’s disappearance and death.

That could affect his credibility when he testifies, experts said.

“It’s going to be a very tough case for prosecutors,” said Cavise.

Defense attorney Brian Telander, declined to comment on the case in advance of the trial.

Prosecutor Michael Combs likewise declined to comment.

Neither Casciaro, who is free on $5 million bail, nor his family could be reached for comment.

It’s going to be tough for Carrick’s family to sit through the two-week trial, which begins Monday with jury selection.

But William Carrick said he simply wants answers and the satisfaction of finally seeing a conclusion to the heart-breaking case.

“The children and myself are in the same state of mind, we’d all like it see it over and done with it.” he said, but added some of his kids want someone held responsible for Brian’s disappearance.

“I know most of my kids would like to see a conviction,” Carrick said. “But it’s not important to me that Mario go to jail for this.”

http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/10133453-418/murder-trial-of-missing-mchenry-county-teen-could-prove-tough-for-prosecutors.html

1:40 p.m. CST, February 1, 2012

A mistrial was declared today after a jury said it was
deadlocked in the murder case of Mario Casciaro, charged in the 2002
disappearance of Johnsburg teenager Brian Carrick.
The jury
foreman announced early this afternoon that the panel, which had begun
deliberating Tuesday, was not be able to reach a decision. Prosecutors
said they would retry Casciaro, who has been free on bond.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-jurors-deadlocked-in-murder-case-of-missing-teen-20120201,0,4186599.story

Man gets 26 years in notorious grocery store murder



12:22 p.m. CST, November 14, 2013



The man convicted of murder in the presumed death of his grocery store co-worker more than a decade ago, when both were teenagers, was sentenced to 26 years in prison this morning in a McHenry County courtroom.

Mario Casciaro was charged in 2010 with murder in the 2002 disappearance of Brian Carrick, whose body has never been found. Prosecutors say another grocery store co-worker delivered a fatal punch to the 17-year-old Carrick. But a jury found Casciaro guilty of murder in April after authorities argued in court that he had ordered the co-worker to confront Carrick over a pot-dealing debt he owned Casciaro.

Casciaro’s family, which co-owned the grocery store at the time, had steadfastly insisted on his innocence and an appeal has already been announced. But Carrick’s father said justice was served when Casciaro was convicted.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-grocery-store-murder-sentencing-20131114,0,1455576.story