A Lombard woman charged in the strangulation of her mother could face life in prison if convicted, DuPage County prosecutors said Friday at the woman’s arraignment.
Stephanie DeFalco, 28, formally pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and other charges in the death of her mother, Judith DeFalco, 61, who was found dead March 20 in the home she shared with her daughter.
At Friday’s hearing before Judge Jeffrey MacKay, Assistant State’s Attorney Jim Scaliatine said a grand jury had returned a nine-count indictment against DeFalco, including five counts of first-degree murder. Another indictment, on a felony murder charge, carries a maximum possible sentence of life in prison, the prosecutor said.
According to authorities, DeFalco had been charged with a misdemeanor theft charge in March for allegedly stealing some of her mother’s jewelry, which she pawned for drug money.
After being released on bond on March 19, police say, DeFalco returned to the residence on South Grace Street. She and her mother then allegedly argued into the early morning hours of March 20, and at some point DeFalco strangled her mother, authorities say.
She was taken into custody the following day in Woodridge, where police say she was driving her mother’s car. DeFalco was arrested and is being held in the DuPage County Jail in lieu of $3 million bail. She is due back in court May 4.
Clifford Ward is a freelance reporter.
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