Attorney charged with murdering wife in South Loop high-rise ordered detained pending trial
New 'timeline' to murder evidence presented during hearing
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Stunning new details were revealed for the first time in the trial of a Chicago tax attorney, accused of murdering his wife in 2024 by throwing her down a 29-story stairwell in the couple's high-rise condo building in the South Loop.
Adam Beckerink, 47, is accused of murdering his 36-year-old wife, Caitlin Tracey, in October 2024. A warrant for Beckerink's arrest was filed a year later to the day.
ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch
For the first time on Friday, the Cook County State's Attorney's Office laid out key pieces of evidence they plan to present at trial that they say prove Beckerink is the sole person to carry out Tracey's death. That includes only Beckerink's DNA being found on a door handle to the stairwell outside of the couple's 24th-floor condo unit, from where Tracey allegedly fell.
In court filings reviewed by the I-Team, Beckerink's attorneys have argued Tracey was a habitual drug user, who either accidentally or intentionally fell 29 stories to her death.
The ABC 7 I-Team has been covering every aspect of this story for more than a year, including Beckerink's extradition from Michigan, where he was serving a prison sentence tied to a prior domestic violence incident involving his wife.
At Friday's detention hearing, which was continued from earlier in the week, prosecutors told Judge Susan Ortiz that Beckerink poses a "real and present threat to the community."
"The truth is that (Tracey) was the victim of domestic violence," Assistant State's Attorney Anne McCord told the judge. "The person she loved was abusing her, pulling her hair, dragging her around, causing her to lose consciousness. She tried to get out of that cycle, and she couldn't."
Judge Ortiz agreed the state met its burden for first-degree murder charges against Beckerink, ordering him held until trial after learning about years of domestic abuse, and what the state alleges are inconsistent statements made by Beckerink in the days following his wife's disappearance.
Assistant State's Attorney Anne McCord also revealed an ominous warning made by Tracey a month before her death, while speaking to a Michigan victim advocate, who later testified before a grand jury for this murder case.
"The victim advocate had a conversation with the victim at the courthouse, where the victim said she was planning on ending her relationship with the defendant and returning to work," McCord said in court. "During this conversation, (Tracey) also said that the defendant had previously threatened to throw her over the stairs."
State's Timeline to Murder
During a nearly two-hour hearing, prosecutors laid out for the first time their timeline leading up to Tracey's murder.
On Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, prosecutors say Beckerink can be seen with his wife Tracey in recorded surveillance video, parking at the South Loop high-rise condo building, where they lived together.
Beckerink, who had surgery days before, can be seen holding crutches and walking with a limp, McCord said.
The next day, Friday, Oct. 25, 2024, investigators say Tracey called a condo doorman to bring a grocery delivery up to their condo. Prosecutors believe it's the last time Tracey is seen alive.
That evening, just before 11:30 p.m., two residents on the 11th floor told investigators they heard an unusually loud noise coming from inside the building stairwell. Another couple also heard the noise, according to court testimony. Prosecutors argue this is when Tracey fell from the 24th floor stairwell.
She allegedly fell all the way into the sub-levels of the building.
The next day, Oct. 26, 2024, investigators say Beckerink called police to report Tracey missing, telling them he hadn't seen his wife in around a month; something that is contradicted by the video of them together on Oct. 24, 2024, according to prosecutors.
Then, on Oct. 27, 2024, prosecutors say a severed foot was discovered in a lower-level stairwell of the condo building. Chicago police responded, and Tracey was found dead at the bottom of that same stairwell.
Prosecutors say the only DNA found on the 24th-floor door to the stairwell was Beckerink's.
"DNA swabs taken from the hallway side of the stairwell door excluded the victim, and showed very strong support that the defendant is a contributor of that DNA profile," McCord said.
Defense attorneys argue Tracey was found dead with large amounts of drugs in her system.
"At autopsy, Caitlin had ingested cocaine at levels associated with emergency medical intervention, consumed alcohol, taken Vicodin/Norco, a near-suicidal dose of Tramadol and a dose of Cialis intended for a healthy adult male," Beckerink's attorneys wrote in a court filing. "In combination, these substances are medically known to cause euphoria, impaired judgment, agitation, aggression, risk-taking behavior, dizziness and sudden drops in blood pressure - particularly dangerous for a woman weighing approximately 102 pounds."
Todd Pugh, Beckerink's defense attorney, testified that Tracey was not in a stable psychological state prior to her death, and that her fall was either accidental or she intentionally fell over the railing.
After a judge ordered Beckerink held behind bars until trial, Pugh said he understands but that his client is innocent.
"We're disappointed with the judge's ruling, but we absolutely understand it," Pugh said. "The message here is if you are involved in a relationship that includes drug abuse, alcohol abuse and allegations of intimate partner violence, and something happens to that person, you're going to jail. And you're going to get charged with murder. We look forward to winning this case at trial."
Beckerink's next court hearing is scheduled for Feb. 3.
You can contact the Illinois domestic violence hotline at 1-877-863-6338 click here for more information.
