WAUKEGAN - In a story Jan. 8 about the health of a defendant, The Associated Press reported erroneously that the Illinois Department of Health has determined Randy Swopes can stand trial on child endangerment charges. Instead the health department determined he is mentally fit to stand trial.
A corrected version of the story is below:
WAUKEGAN, Ill. (AP) - A suburban Chicago man who, with his wife, is accused of confining their 10-year-old daughter to their basement has been found fit for trial.
As a result of the finding by the Illinois Department of Public Health, 48-year-old Randy Swopes may be tried in Lake County on child endangerment and unlawful restraint charges.
Swopes is scheduled to appear in court Jan. 15 for a hearing in which his attorneys can either accept or challenge the fitness determination.
After previously being deemed unfit for trial, Swopes was held in a secure treatment facility in Elgin for treatment.
Swopes and his wife, Katherine, are accused of keeping their daughter in a basement room for months. They claim they believed she was possessed by a demon.
Forty-nine-year-old Katherine Swopes is free on a $25,000 signature bond and is prohibited from contacting the victim and three other children.
