Addison Man Charged With Killing Wife Held on $3M Bond

An Addison man charged with murdering his wife last week was ordered held Monday on $3 million bond.

Kurtis Worley appeared in court through video conference from DuPage County Jail as prosecutors detailed what allegedly happened in the couple's home. Worley, of the 900 block of Craig Place, was charged with first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Martha, on Sunday.

Prosecutors said Martha Worley's two sons called 911 early Friday and told police they heard their mother screaming for help from her bedroom. When the boys ran up to help, the door was locked. They said Worley was naked and looked like a psychopath when he opened the door.

Prosecutors said the boys saw their mother face-down in her bed when Worley lunged at his 15-year-old stepson and stabbed him in the neck. The boys ran outside.

Police later found Martha Worley on the bed and Worley with cuts on his wrists and a self-inflicted stab wound to his neck. Police said Worley admitted to being angry that his wife told him she wanted a divorce. He said he wanted sex one last time and she refused him.

Police said Worley told them the couple had gone out with friends Thursday night, and when they got home, he became angry about their marriage ending. He begged her for sex and she refused, prosecutors said.

He then went to the garage, drank some tequila and returned to the bedroom where she was sleeping, prosecutors said. He stared at her for five to 15 minutes then he started stabbing her in the head in a punching motion, according to prosecutors.

Police say Worley re-enacted the incident for police. Worley told police he wanted to kill himself because he realized what he had done.

Martha Worley sustained two significant head injuries and facial lacerations, police said. She appeared to have been hit with a blunt object. She was pronounced dead at Loyola University Medical Center.

A family friend said Martha Worley was an organ donor and "saved five lives today."

Police said they collected a bloody knife and a box cutter from bedroom.

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