Proceedings were expected to start Friday against a man accused of setting a fire that killed seven people, including a 3-day-old infant, in Cicero on Valentine's Day nearly five years ago.
Lawrence Meyers, who owned the home on the 3000 block of South 48th Court, was charged with first-degree murder along with the building manager, Marion Comier.
Prosecutors allege both men plotted to burn the building down to collect the insurance money.
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Meyers is due in court Friday as jury selection begins in the case.
He'd previously denied being involved with the fire but police said they have audio recordings of him confessing to the crime. On that recording, Meyers reportedly says the fire was set at the wrong time and that he didn't want anyone to get hurt.
Seven people, ranging in age from 20 years to three-days-old, were killed in the Feb. 14, 2010 fire that tore through the three-flat building. A firefighter was injured when a portion of a chimney collapsed on him.
The dead included Sallie Gist, 18; Gist's two children, Rayshawn Reed, 3, and newborn Byron Reed; her twin siblings, Elisha and Elijah Gist, 16; her boyfriend, Byron Reed, 20, and family friend Tiera Davidson, 19.
As many as 30 people may have been living in three apartments in the building at the time of the fire, authorities said.
The lack of 911 calls from the building, and the fire's rapid spread, led investigators to question whether the fire had been smoldering for hours or an intentionally set blaze.
