Jan. 10--A 43-year-old Lake County man has been convicted of murdering his 40-year-old girlfriend during a fight in her Antioch Township home in 2012.
Lake County Circuit Court Judge Victoria Rossetti found Michael Axtell, 43, guilty of first-degree murder early Friday afternoon in the death of Tammy Stone on Oct. 24, 2012. The defense had opted for a bench trial instead of a jury.
Stone's relatives cried and hugged each other after the verdict. Axtell displayed no immediate reaction.
At the request of Lake County Assistant State's Attorney Jeff Pavletic, Rossetti revoked Axtell's $3 million bond. He will be held in Lake County Jail without bond until his sentencing hearing, which Rossetti scheduled for March 3.
Axtell faces 20 to 60 years in prison.
"I've always complimented her for her parenting. She raised four kids and she was doing it all by herself," said Meghan Stone, Tammy Stone's 21-year-old daughter. "She was a real good mom."
Read more in the Chicago Tribune Media Group's Lake County News-Sun.
