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In a shocking and rather troubling case, Edward Mitzelfeld, 69, a resident of Bartlett, was officially declared guilty, despite carrying the tag of mental illness, on Friday. His atrocious crime of brutally murdering his 93-year-old mother back in 2019 confirmed that conviction, courtesy of the discerning judgment of DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office. An unsparing testament to his savagery is the chilling image of a septuagenarian standing in his front yard, hands raised in surrender, eerily silent, stoic even, while his elderly mother lay lifeless inside their shared home.
The former Bryn Mawr Avenue resident from the 700 block area didn’t receive his verdict at once. It was rather the culmination of a painstaking seven-day bench trial expounded under the perceptive watch of Judge Daniel Guerin. The trial concluded its process on March 22, setting the stage for a brutally honest assessment of Mitzelfeld’s actions.
In a chilling and distressing turn of events from May 29, 2019, Mitzelfeld was charged with five counts of first-degree murder. His mother, the unfortunate Frances Kelly, fell prey to a gruesome act of violence that would leave any sane person aghast.
Upon the Bartlett police officers’ arrival on the tragic day, they found an unremorseful Mitzelfeld awaiting them in the front yard. But it was the horrifying scene inside the house that proved to be much more daunting. Frances Kelly was discovered lying face-down on her kitchen floor in a pool of her own blood, bearing the brutal scars of her son’s rage. As if her downfall on her own kitchen floor wasn’t enough, Frances had been subjected to a brutalised attack with a kitchen knife.
Multiple stab wounds had marred her back, her aorta had been ruthlessly severed, and her lungs brutally punctured. The physical evidence pointed at a horrific unwinding of events, the sheer brutality of which remains unparalleled. The forensic analysis of the crime scene could only point towards a nightmarish reality that unfolded in the confines of what was once deemed as a ‘safe’ home.
State’s Attorney Robert Berlin, in an emotional statement following the trial, expressed the terrors such a case inflicts on all parties involved. “This is a tragic case that has surely taken a tremendous toll on Frances’ and Edward’s entire family,” Berlin, voiced, laying bare the repercussions of this horrifying case. It was his expressed wish that with this arduous trial chapter now past, Frances Kelly’s surviving kin and close familiar circles might just be able to find a semblance of closure, however daunting that may seem. There’s an underlying plea to remember Frances for the life she led, not the grotesque end she met.
Though the ordeal ended with the grim pronouncement of Mitzelfeld’s guilt, the narrative continues. His next court appearance, set to take place on May 10, will be a consequential date. It signals a continuation of justice served and a reminder of the devastating toll violent crimes take on individual lives and the fabric of our community.
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