Retired Attorney Dies After Beating In Hallway Of Evanston Home

EVANSTON, IL — Authorities said an Indiana man accused of punching and stomping on the head of an elderly stranger in Evanston last month is expected to be charged with murder after the man he is accused of beating died Friday.

Daniel Murray was approached by someone he had never met before around 7 p.m. on Nov. 10 in a ground-floor hallway of his apartment building at Main Street and Chicago Avenue, according to police and prosecutors.

Murray, 71, and his wife had just ordered take-out food from a nearby restaurant, and he was on his way to pick it up, according to the Cook County State's Attorney's Office.

He never reached the restaurant.

Cory Gilmartin, 34, of Mishawaka, Indiana, was arrested nearby. Records show he has been held at Cook County Jail ever since.

According to prosecutors, Evanston police officers dispatched to the building for a call of a disturbance found Gilmartin in the service hallway outside an immediate care center in the building's ground floor.

When they asked Gilmartin for identification, he led them around the corner to find Murray lying face down and unconscious with blood coming from his ears, prosecutors said.

Murray's wife went looking for him once he did not return home. After he been loaded into an ambulance, she was able to identify him for paramedics.

Authorities said the attack appeared to be random and unprovoked.

"They're not acquaintances. There was no relationship whatsoever," Evanston Police Cmdr. Brian Henry said. "It's a very, very unfortunate situation."

According to Assistant State's Attorney Andreana Turano's request to have Gilmartin held without bond, Gilmartin punched Murray in the face, knocking him to the ground before striking him several more times as the older man lay motionless on the floor.

"The defendant's violent actions demonstrate a complete disregard for the physical safety of the public and wanton callousness towards the value of human life," Turano said.

Prosecutors said the initial encounter was not captured on video, but security cameras showed Gilmartin stomping on Murray's head more than eight times after he was already on the ground.

Gilmartin was taken into custody and charged on Nov. 12 with aggravated battery to a senior citizen. On Nov. 25, prosecutors added a charge of attempted murder to three counts of aggravated battery.

Two days later, Murray died from his injuries. The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office ruled his death a homicide caused by an assault and beating to the head.

Murray, a former federal prosecutor and retired partner with the law firm Johnson & Bell, had been diagnosed with Parkinson's and used a walker to get around.

According to an obituary, he was actively involved in Chicago Legal Advocacy for Incarcerated Mothers, Cabrini Green Legal Aid, and St. Ignatius Parish in Rogers Park for many years.

"Dan will be remembered for his authenticity, his kind ways, his intellectual rigor, his rugged charm, his mutually elevating wit and wisdom, his faith, his athletic achievements earlier in life and the courage and ferocity with which he faced his health challenges later in life," it said. "Dan will forever be cherished for his selfless love of family and his ever-present concern for those less fortunate than him."

Police expect Gilmartin to be charged with murder next week. He is due back in court Tuesday.

According to prosecutors, Gilmartin admitted he had struck an elderly man who walked with a cane. He also made "several nonsensical statements" to investigators after his arrest.

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Gilmartin was elected president of the student government at Indiana University South Bend for the 2011-2012 school year. The following year, he was arrested and charged with stalking and other offenses that were later dropped as part of a plea deal.

Indiana court records show that Gilmartin was first criminally charged in St. Joseph's County in September 2013. Three months later, a judge found that Gilmartin was not competent to stand trial and referred him for mental health treatment.

In August 2014, another St. Joseph's County judge found that Gilmartin was competent to face a civil lawsuit, and in October he was ordered released to a family member ahead of trial. Prosecutors demanded a jury trial, and after several delays, Gilmartin pleaded guilty to a reduced charge in August 2015. He was sentenced to one year probation and a suspended jail sentence in November 2015.

In January 2020, a judge ordered Gilmartin to pay more than $10,000 to Memorial Hospital of South Bend, which had filed a civil lawsuit in 2015 for the cost of damage the hospital's attorneys alleged he caused. That debt remains outstanding.

According to the Cook County State's Attorney's Office, Gilmartin's most recent prior arrest had come in March, when he was charged with driving under the influence of Sevier County, Utah. He also has a prior DUI charge in Indiana and a suspended driver's license charge, but prosecutors said they were unsure whether he was convicted.

UPDATE: Murder Charges Filed Against Cory Gilmartin In Evanston Homicide