Winnetka murder case from 1990 could provide legal route for Highland Park survivors
HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. (CBS) – The mass shooting in Highland Park rattled the community, not unlike another high-profile tragedy on Chicago's North Shore, a triple murder in Winnetka more than three decades ago.
CBS 2 investigator Megan Hickey looked into the parallels from the old murder case which may help provide a legal precedent for survivors of the parade shooting.
In that case from 1990, a 16-year-old boy shot and killed his pregnant neighbor and her husband. The victim's family was successful in bringing a civil case against the shooter's parents.
The family told Hickey they immediately saw the connection with the situation in Highland Park.
Jennifer Bishop-Jenkins fought back tears as she paid her respects at the memorial in Highland Park on Monday. She is the sister of Nancy Langert, who, along with her husband Richard, was killed by David Biro, 16.
"I immediately saw the parallels between my sister's murder and this one," Bishop-Jenkins said. "Parents who had all of the warning signs in the world and just ignored them."
Like the suspected shooter in Highland Park, police were aware of Biro.
"To me, this is recklessness," said attorney John Corbett, who successfully sued Biro's parents for failing to stop their son from murdering the Langerts, in spite of the warning signs.
"I think the biggest parallel is the parental responsibility," Corbett added. "The parents in this case knew that the kid had problems."
Police records show the suspected Highland Park shooter had threatened to kill his family with his collection of knives and swords in September 2019.
"(In the Biro case) police were called because he attempted to put wood alcohol in the family's milk, which is similar to this case because there was also an attempt or at least a threat to kill the family," Corbett said.
Bishop-Jenkins has been traveling the country for the better part of three decades pushing for survivors' rights. She tries to teach others to take threats seriously.
"When your children say to you, 'I'm going to kill you all,' believe them," she said. "Believe them."
Bishop-Jenkins added she's continued her activism for her late sister and her husband.
"I do this for them," Bishop-Jenkins said. "I didn't want them to die. They were so happy."
Corbett said he believes a civil lawsuit is likely, noting that in his case they were able to make a claim on the Biro family's homeowners' insurance. He said that could be a potential route in the Highland Park case, one of many potential actions he and Bishop-Jenkins expect to come from this tragedy.
"You can't ignore this," Bishop-Jenkins said. "You can't ignore this."
Corbett said the Biro case was one of the first parental responsibility cases in Illinois.
While the potential action involves civil liability, the Lake County Prosecutor has not said one way or another whether his office would consider any criminal charges against the parents of the suspected Highland Park shooter.
