Paramedics were summoned, as well as the McHenry County Sheriff's Department, who soon found the body of 70-year-old Ruth Gauger in a trailer on the property.
[6] On March 8, 1996, the Second District Illinois Appellate Court unanimously reversed and remanded the case for a new trial on the ground that Judge Henry L. Cowlin erred in failing to grant a motion to suppress Gary’s allegedly inculpatory statements.
Pack continued to suggest publicly that Gary had in fact committed the crime and was freed only because the prosecution could not meet its burden of proof without the confession.
Miller and Schneider were later charged with the murders in 2004 by McHenry County prosecutor Pack, who noted that the previous federal convictions had been for racketeering.
[9] Gauger sued, alleging three McHenry County Sheriff’s detectives conspired to maliciously prosecute him for crimes he didn’t commit.
The play, written by Eric Jensen and Jessica Blank, details how each individual was convicted of murder and sentenced to death, in addition to their exoneration after varying years of imprisonment.
[13] In 2022 and 2024 Miller, serving life sentences from his 2000 federal conviction, petitioned for compassionate release from prison pursuant to the First Step Act.