FOX RIVER GROVE — Patti McNamara’s husband left their Fox River Grove house for about an hour Thursday and found himself locked out when he returned about 8 a.m.
He called police to help him gain entry. Inside, police said, they found his wife’s body in the mudroom, off the garage area.
McNamara’s autopsy is scheduled for today, as is a bond hearing for her stepson, 26-year-old Martin Green, who is accused of her murder. Police said she died of blunt trauma, and a hammer was recovered at the scene.
McNamara, 52, and her husband shared the house at 111 Gladys Ave. with Green, said Chief Ron Lukasik of the Fox River Grove Police Department. No one else was home at the time of the incident, he said.
When police arrived, Green already had fled. He had jumped into the Fox River and apparently tried to cross into Cary, police said.
Neighbors helped him from the river, and he was taken to Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington by Cary Fire Protection District.
He was treated for exposure before being released from the hospital Thursday night, charged with two counts of first-degree murder, and taken to McHenry County Jail.
Lukasik said he would not speculate on a motive for the killing.
“It’s still under investigation, so we’re not going into detail,” he said.
He also declined to say how many times McNamara had been struck, but said the hammer was believed to be the only weapon and Green was the only suspect.
The department has had limited contact with people at the residence before the homicide, Lukasik said.
“It was nothing criminal in nature,” he said. The calls were for citizen assists, such as vehicle lockouts, Lukasik said.
Green was charged with driving under the influence in 2008, although he later pleaded guilty to reckless driving as part of a negotiated agreement, court records show. Previously, Green played soccer his freshman and sophomore year at Cary-Grove High School, a school official said.
McNamara, who spent a large portion of her career at Baxter Healthcare, had three children and five stepchildren.
McNamara’s death is the second area homicide this week – both allegedly involving domestic violence – and the first murder in Fox River Grove’s history.
Sixteen-year-old David Szalonek is accused of shooting and killing his father, 51-year-old Brian Szalonek, at their home in Algonquin on Monday.
Read the original article from the Northwest Herald.
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