Ill. death spree suspect's battery case dismissed

[July 05, 2012]  GALESBURG (AP) -- A man accused of killing eight people in Illinois and Missouri won't face a second trial for aggravated battery after the case against him was dismissed.

Nicholas Sheley (SHEE'-lee) is accused of killing eight people in 2008. He's been convicted of killing a 65-year-old Galesburg man, and his second murder trial is scheduled for September.

In the battery case, Sheley was sentenced to seven years in prison after prosecutors accused him of dismantling a Knox County jail chair and throwing its legs at a guard. An appeals court, however, ruled the trial court erred in finding Sheley suffered from a "severe mental illness" that prevented him from preparing his own defense.

The (Galesburg) Register-Mail (http://bit.ly/NZShsO) reports that Sheley wasn't in court Monday when the dismissal was granted.

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.