William Kunkle, retired judge and prosecutor in John Wayne Gacy case, dies at 81
CHICAGO (CBS) -- William J. "Bill" Kunkle Jr., a retired Cook County judge and attorney who was also known as the chief trial prosecutor in the John Wayne Gacy case, has died.
CBS 2 Legal Analyst Irv Miller confirmed Kunkle died on Saturday at the age of 81.
Kunkle began as an assistant public defender in Cook County in 1970, and moved to the Cook County State's Attorney's office three years later. He served a number of roles in the State's Attorney's office, including Chief Deputy State's Attorney and First Assistant State's Attorney.
Kunkle is well-known as the attorney who led the prosecution against Gacy and secured the death penalty in his case in 1980.
Speaking to CBS 2's Walter Jacobson in 1992, Kunkle called Gacy a ruthless and sadistic killing machine.
"He's responsible, he knew what he was doing, he planned it in advance, and he carried it out, and he enjoyed it," Kunkle said at the time.
In 1999, Kunkle also led the prosecution of the DuPage 7 – seven law enforcement officials who were charged with conspiracy to convict Rolando Cruz wrongfully of the 1983 murder of 10-year-old Jeanine Nicarico in Naperville. The DuPage 7 were all acquitted.
Kunkle went on to serve as head of the Illinois Gaming Commission and then became a Cook County judge – a post from which he retired in 2014.
Kunkle also appeared regularly as a legal analyst on CBS 2 alongside attorney Adam Bourgeois Sr. back in the 1990s.