Appellate court upholds conviction of Westmont man for killing father

A state appellate court has upheld the conviction of a west suburban man for stabbing his father to death in 2011.

William Clifford Jr., 38, was found guilty of first-degree murder following a four-day jury trial on Jan. 30, 2015, according to the DuPage County state’s attorney’s office.

Judge Robert Kleeman sentenced him to 35 years in prison on March 23, 2015.

Westmont police responded to a fight at the younger Clifford’s residence on May 28, 2011, prosecutors said. When they arrived, they found 63-year-old William Clifford Sr. lying in a hallway on the third floor of the complex, bleeding from the upper body. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The investigation revealed Clifford Sr. had gone to his son’s home to visit when a fight broke out between the two men, prosecutors said. The younger Clifford repeatedly stabbed his father in the upper body.

In his appeal, Clifford challenged the admissibility of the state’s expert witness’ opinion that his palm print matched a print found on the murder weapon, according to the state’s attorney’s office. He also argued that the 35-year sentence was not warranted because the trial court refused to consider certain mitigating evidence at the sentencing hearing.

The appellate court found the trial court acted properly and within its power.

“I would like to thank the Appellate Court for their complete and in-depth review of Mr. Clifford’s arguments,” State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said in a statement.

“His attempt to call into question expert testimony confirming the fact that his prints were on the murder weapon, and subsequent argument that 35 years is excessive for the murder of his father confirm he has no remorse for stabbing his father to death,” Berlin said.

Clifford Jr. is serving his sentence at the Menard Correctional Center.