Jan. 15--An Addison man pleaded guilty Friday to the murder of his wife and the attempted murder of her teenage son during a 2013 attack at their family home.
Kurtis Worley faces a sentence that could range from 26 to 90 years for the July 26, 2013, murder of Martha Worley, 39, and the attempted murder of his stepson.
Worley, now 35, entered guilty pleas during a hearing in DuPage County Court before Judge Liam Brennan, who will eventually hand down a sentence. The judge set an interim date of Feb. 25 for the return of a pre-sentence investigation. A date for sentencing will likely be set at that hearing.
The Addison man, who has been in custody since his arrest, faces a 20- to 60-year sentence on the first-degree murder charge and a mandatory consecutive sentence of six to 30 years for the attempted first-degree murder charge.
In presenting the factual basis for the partial plea deal, Assistant State's Attorney Nancy Donahoe recounted the deterioration in the Worleys' marriage that motivated the attack.
Kurtis Worley suspected his wife of being unfaithful, and they had argued about it on the night of the murder at their house in the 900 block of Craig Place, Donahoe said.
About 3 a.m. on July 26, 2013, Worley entered the couple's bedroom and began stabbing his sleeping wife in the head, face and neck.
Alerted by her screams, Martha's sons, who were 12 and 15, tried to enter the bedroom, but the door was locked, Donahoe said. They began pounding on the door, and moments later, Kurtis opened the door and slashed the older boy's throat before closing and relocking the door.
The boys ran outside and contacted police. A detective broke down the locked bedroom door and found the woman fatally wounded and Worley lying on the floor with self-inflicted knife wounds to the wrists and neck.
Martha Worley was still breathing, but not responsive, Donahoe said. She later was declared brain dead following a surgery. The injured son spent about a week in the hospital before he was discharged, the prosecutor said. Worley later told police that he was upset because his wife had wanted to end their marriage.
