Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Brumar89 who wrote (324057)	9/13/2009 12:55:33 PM
From: Saulamanca	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793843

Mayor: Kelly's girlfriend is 'lawyered up', not talking September 13, 2009 11:33 AM \| No Comments \| UPDATED STORY Country Club Hills mayor Dwight Welch said this morning that the girlfriend of Christopher Kelly has "lawyered up" and is no longer talking to police investigating the Saturday death of the former top Rod Blagojevich adviser. He also said police are searching for a man who went to Oak Forest Hospital while Kelly was being treated in the emergency room and claimed to be Kelly's friend. The man, described by the mayor as a white male with gray hair, sought the keys to Kelly's Cadillac Escalade, which apparently was used to take Kelly to the hospital. Welch said police were called from Oak Forest Hospital at 2:58 a.m. Saturday to interview Kelly and his girlfriend, who identified herself as Clarissa Flores of Chicago. She told police she was Kelly's girfriend and had driven Kelly to the hospital. He was later transported to Stroger at 4:15 a.m. and pronounced dead at 10:46 a.m. Saturday. Welch said police who responded to Oak Forest found the girlfriend and a man claiming to be an acquaintance in the waiting room as Kelly was being treated for an apparent overdose. The girlfriend made an initial statement to police but has since gotten an attorney and stopped talking to investigators. Flores' attorney, Terry Gillespie, was irate over Welch's comments to the media, describing it as "unconscionable grandstanding." Welch had complained that police are not being "given the whole truth" by Kelly's girlfriend, who he identified as Clarissa Flores Buhelos, and made a point of displaying her driver's license to reporters, even spelling out her name, giving her address and showing her date of birth. "Flores has lawyered up, she's hired an attorney and is no longer speaking to the police,'' Welch said. Reached by phone today, a distraught-sounding Flores declined to comment, other than to sigh and say "You know" when asked how she's doing. "It's unconscionable grandstanding, is what it is," Gillespie said, adding that Flores was only pursuing her constitutional right to have an attorney present during her conversations with police. "I called the [Country Club Hills police] lieutenant's office this morning, and the Chicago police. Apparently, they're too busy having press conferences." "Ms. Flores told them last night that she would be glad to talk to them," said Gillespie, declining to provide details of what she would say. "She has absolutely nothing to hide. The fact that she asked to have a lawyer present does not mean she is in any fashion not willing to cooperate with them." The woman and Kelly had allegedly exchanged text messages prior to his being taken to the hospital. Police are trying to get records from telephone companies to determine where everyone was at the time and what was said. He said Kelly's girlfriend apparently found him at a Country Club Hills lumberyard and speculated he may have been trying to retrieve items from a storage area. Police are working to get warrants to search that area. "We believe that maybe he had something stored there and that's another element we're looking into,'' said Welch. Welch said police found the girlfriend's wallet with her identification in the Escalade. Officials also found "drugs" in the SUV, but he refused to talk further about them, saying they were "part of our evidence chain." He said some of the drugs were prescription pain medication. He said Kelly told police at the hospital that he had undergone surgery to his "genitalia area". He said investigators are awaiting medical records from Kelly's doctors, for which they may need to issue warrants. Officials said the Cook County medical examiner's office had performed an autopsy on Kelly this morning but have not yet released the results. Officials said the final determination of Kelly's death would await the result of toxicology tests. Welch said investigators are treating the case as a possible suicide death investigation, but are devoting resources as if it were a homicide because of the high-profile nature of the case. He said Chicago homicide detectives and FBI officials are assisting Country Club Hills police, which are leading the investigation. "We're giving it all of the bells and whistles,'' Welch said. "Were going after every detail ... we're treating it as we would if this were a homicide. It's a high profile case, we want to do it by the books, by the numbers and do it right.' -- Antonio Olivo and Carlos Sadovi Share chicagobreakingnews.com