Pretrial release denied for man accused in 2017 murder of Joliet bartender he was dating

Judy Wang
·2 min read
17

JOLIET, Ill. — A pre-trial release has been denied for a man accused of killing a bartender in Joliet in 2017.

Jeremy Boshears, 39, a former member of the Joliet Outlaws, was denied pretrial release on Monday as he awaits a second trial in the murder of 24-year-old Kaitlyn Kearns, a Joliet bartender he was dating nearly seven years ago.

A Will County judge tossed his conviction in January.

The Coal City man was found guilty of murder and concealing a homicide in May 2022. The ruling was overturned, with the judge citing errors made during the trial.

Prosecutors said Boshears murdered Kearns in November of 2017. Kearns left Woody’s Bar, where she worked, and then drove to the Joliet Outlaws clubhouse to meet Boshears and was shot and killed during a dispute.

Prosecutors claim Boshears became jealous over text messages Kearns had received from an ex-boyfriend. They said he fatally shot her, then put her body inside her Jeep and drove to a Kankakee County farm and left the vehicle in a barn.

Will County Sheriff’s deputies later went to the property after Kearns’ cellphone pinged at that location.

Boshears testified in his own defense, saying Kearns grabbed a gun from behind the clubhouse bar during the dispute and shot herself.

Boshears attorney argued to the court that his client had no prior record and and was eligible under the new guidelines for pretrial release under the SAFE-T Act.

“When he was arrested, it was back in a point and time where there was cash bail in Illinois. With the SAFE-T Act, it’s a whole new set of rules,” said Chuck Bretz.

Among the motions filed, Bretz told WGN News that a reconstruction report from the law office’s expert suggests Kearns’ wound may have been self-inflicted.

Will County’s State’s Attorney Office did not comment on Monday’s court proceedings.

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Both parties will be back in court on June 21.

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