September 15, 2023

JOLIET— Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow announces that Timothy Gregory, 43, of Joliet, was sentenced today to 35 years in prison in the 2017 bludgeoning with a hammer and sexual assault of his brother’s girlfriend and arson of his brother’s home. Gregory pled guilty to Attempt Murder (a Class X felony); Aggravated Criminal Sexual Assault (a Class X felony), and Aggravated Arson (a Class X Felony) and was sentenced today by Circuit Judge Amy Bertani-Tomczak. The judge entered a guilty but mentally ill finding, which will not affect his serving his ultimate sentence.

On March 25, 2017, Gregory went to his brother’s residence, which he shared with his girlfriend, the victim, on Infantry Drive in Joliet. While there Gregory, without provocation, repeatedly bludgeoned his brother’s girlfriend on the head with a hammer and then proceeded to sexually assault her in the living room where she passed out. When she regained consciousness, she saw Gregory approaching her and ran into the bathroom, locking the door. She again passed out and when she regained consciousness, she saw smoke coming in from under the bathroom door. She opened the door, and saw the house engulfed in flames and the defendant standing outside the bathroom door waiting for her. Gregory attempted to prevent her from leaving the house by pushing her into boxes when she attempted to flee to the front door. She ran outside where she was assisted by a bystander who saw her bleeding and staggering outside near the residence. The woman was sent to the hospital, where she was temporarily put into a medically induced coma for 6 days and required numerous surgeries resulting from her injuries. The residence also suffered extensive damage.

“Gregory engaged in evil and sickening conduct that will continue to haunt this courageous victim long after today’s sentencing decision,” Glasgow said. “Although there is no sentence that can undo the real-life horror this woman experienced, the years Gregory will spend in a cold jail cell will prevent him from committing this sort of savagery on another person as he bears the consequence for his utter lack of humanity.”

The sentence will be served at 85 percent. Gergory will receive 2,364 days credit for time served. He also will serve three years of mandatory supervised release.

Glasgow thanked Assistant State’s Attorney Christine Vukmir for her tireless dedication to duty, as well as Victim Witness Advocates Danette Pasdertz and Katrice Sawyer, Administrative Assistant Kendall Ziech, and the Joliet Police Department for their commitment in this case.