HOUSTON (Court TV) — A Texas man charged with murdering his pregnant wife before fleeing to Italy won’t be returned to the United States until prosecutors can assure their Italian counterparts that they will not seek the death penalty.
Lee Gilley is charged with murder in the death of his wife, Christa Gilley. (Law&Crime)
Lee Gilley, 39, has pleaded not guilty to charges of capital murder in the death of his wife, Christa Gilley, 38. Lee Gilley’s trial was scheduled to begin in May, and he had been out on bond while awaiting its start.
Gilley called 911 to report his pregnant wife was nonresponsive. While he allegedly tried to frame Christa Gilley’s death as a suicide, a medical examiner ruled the cause of death was compression of the neck and upper back, federal prosecutors said. Christa Gilley was nine weeks pregnant when she died.
But on May 1, Gilley allegedly cut off his ankle monitor before fleeing the country on an Air Canada flight that landed in Milan on May 3. Federal prosecutors said that upon his arrival in Italy, Gilley used the name “Lejeune Jean Luc Olivier” and presented forged Belgian documents and a passport to border control; he was immediately taken into immigration custody.
When Gilley told police in Italy his real name, he said that he was awaiting trial for his wife’s murder but that he wanted to claim asylum in Italy.
Prosecutors in Texas began the extradition process, but the Italian court has said it will not release Gilley if he faces a potential death sentence, because capital punishment is not legal in Italy. Prosecutors had never filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty but seemed hesitant to put assurances in writing.
Gilley’s attorney, Dick Deguerin, told Court TV that the Italian government appears “equally concerned” that even if Gilley does not face a death sentence, he would face a potential sentence of life without the possibility of parole. Deguerin said the Italian court has indicated it may not release him unless prosecutors agree to reduce the maximum penalty. When asked, Deguerin said he did not know what maximum penalty Italy would accept.
Gilley now faces federal charges for fleeing the country in addition to the murder charge in Texas.
