State’s Attorney announces charges in 1986 murder case
Bond was denied for a man charged in connection with a 1986 murder on Chicago’s West Side, according to the Office of Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez.
James Tanner, now 49, has been charged with First Degree Murder in connection with the 1986 fatal stabbing of Norma Jean Kelley, who was 46 at the time of her murder.
The charges against Tanner are the result of new DNA testing of evidence from the case that was initiated as a result of the ongoing efforts of the Chicago Police Department’s Cold Case Unit working in cooperation with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. A DNA profile that matched Tanner was found on several pieces of evidence found at the crime scene, resulting in the charges against Tanner in this case.
According to prosecutors, in November of 1986, Tanner and Kelley had an argument, during which Tanner stabbed Kelley. Tanner left the scene on his bike and Kelley’s body was found a short time later.
Tanner is currently being held in Cook County Jail on unrelated charges of possession of a stolen motor vehicle. Tanner has a previous murder conviction from a 1989 case and is wanted on warrants from North Dakota in connection with check fraud cases.
Tanner’s next court date is March 29 at the Cook County Criminal Courthouse in Chicago.
The public is reminded that criminal charging documents contain allegations that are not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the state has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
