Richard Turner receives 42 years for murder, assault
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Richard Turner II, 34, Eldorado, entered guilty pleas in Saline County Circuit Court Wednesday to one count of predatory criminal sexual assault and second degree murder, cases pending since 2010.
Turner's jury trial on two counts of predatory criminal sexual assault was set to begin 9 a.m. Wednesday and was delayed while jurors waited in the courtroom for defense attorney Morgan Scroggins and prosecutors to negotiate a plea, according to a press release from Saline County State's Attorney Mike Henshaw.
Turner pled to predatory criminal sexual assault of a 7-year-old family member that occurred between September of 2000 and September of 2002 and was sentenced to 22 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. He must serve 85-percent of the sentence and register as a sex offender for life upon his release.
At 1 p.m. Turner pled guilty to second degree murder for the June 2009 death of 4-year-old Jessika James of Eldorado. He received a 20-year sentence to be served concurrent with the predatory criminal sexual assault sentence.
State's Attorney Mike Hensaw and Assistant State's Attorney Eva Walker handled the murder case for the state and Walker handled the sexual assault case.
Illinois State Police Special Agent Gwen Basinger was the lead investigator in both cases.