EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – A Collinsville, Illinois, man appeared in Madison County Circuit Court on Tuesday to admit to the 2019 murder of an Edwardsville couple, and was sentenced immediately afterward.
Michael Ladd, 79, and Dr. Lois Ladd, 68, were found stabbed to death inside their home in the 800 block of North Kansas Street shortly after 10:30 a.m. on March 18, 2019.
The Madison County Medical Examiner determined they’d been killed the day prior.
Investigators with the Illinois State Police and Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis recovered evidence from the scene, including pieces of a latex glove, a boot print outside the bathroom window where the killer had entered the home, and bloody boot prints in the Ladds’ bedroom.
Zachary Capers was arrested the morning of the murders on an outstanding warrant for an unrelated incident.
Investigators tied Capers to the murders shortly thereafter.
The Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office charged Capers with four counts of first-degree murder. Capers pleaded not guilty on April 11, 2019.
Capers was initially ruled unfit to stand trial. However, after receiving treatment at a facility operated by the Illinois Department of Human Services, Capers was deemed fit for trial in December 2022.
Rather than proceed with a trial, Capers pleaded “guilty but mentally ill,” prosecutors said, meaning he’ll be eligible for mental health treatment during his incarceration.
The judge sentenced Capers to 60 years in state prison. The Illinois Department of Corrections will have discretion when and how to provide those mental health services.