Man accused in stabbings wants DNA testing

BLOOMINGTON -- A Bloomington man accused of stabbing two women to death is asking a judge for DNA testing to further his claim that someone else carried out the killings.

Leo Guider says the testing may show an unknown drug dealer killed Normal residents Lorraine Fields, 41, and LaKeisha Tyus, 26, on Dec. 18, 2004, Assistant Public Defender Jim Tusek said Monday.

Judge Ronald Dozier scheduled a hearing for Friday to determine exactly what items Guider should be allowed to test while his July 17 trial date approaches.

Guider faces life in prison for the killings. The bodies of the women were found in a car parked along Mason Street between Washington and Front Streets.

Prosecutors have said that Guider admitted to the killings and moving the bodies, but Tusek said Monday that Guider doesn’t know how to drive and that his client believes a drug dealer killed the women.

Fields and Tyus were discovered in a car parked about a block from Guider’s home in the 500 block of West Front Street.

Because the crime involved the killing of multiple persons, Guider would have been eligible for the death penalty.

State’s Attorney William Yoder decided against seeking the death penalty against Guider during a hearing earlier this year.