COOK COUNTY CRIMINAL COURTHOUSE — The former West Loop tanning-salon owner accused in a series of rapes had his bail reduced Wednesday and could be released from jail soon.
Though Marc Winner, 45, has been charged with raping four women, prosecutors on Wednesday said they've identified a total of nine victims — five of whom have complaints outside the statute of limitations.
That figure didn't convince Cook County Judge Carol M. Howard, who agreed to set a combined bond of $625,000 for Winner's four pending rape cases.
Winner had been held without bail since April 29, when Judge Adam Bourgeois Jr. dubbed him "a danger." Before that, Winner posted $50,000, or 10 percent of his initial $500,000 bail, in October. He now needs to post $12,500, or the remaining 10 percent, to go free.
"I think the judge made a fair ruling," defense attorney Steven J. Weinberg said Wednesday. Weinberg, who petitioned for the bond reduction Wednesday, said he's hopeful Winner will come up with the money.
One of Winner's previous victims was dismayed by the judge's actions.
"How could Judge Howard do that?" Lesley Barton asked Wednesday. In 2001, Winner was arrested for criminally sexually assaulting Barton. Prosecutors only pushed for a misdemeanor battery charge in that case, and Winner walked away on probation.
"This is exactly why rape victims don't come forward," Barton said. "When they do, they face the man, the predator, that brutally raped and strangled them — and then a judge lets him go free."
Winner "has clearly raped women and not given it a second thought," Barton charged. "We aren't people to him. ... And here, [Judge Howard] lets him out to go do it again."
RELATED: Tanning Salon Owner Marc Winner Raped Me in 2001 But Went Free, Woman Says
Winner is charged with raping four women from 2009 to 2015. Three alleged victims were customers or employees at his Soleil Tanning Salon, 1018 W. Madison St., which was shuttered by the city in May. In the fourth case, Winner allegedly raped an acquaintance inside his mother's Edgewater home.
For his first two cases, Winner was hit with a $500,000 "composite bond," meaning he needed to post $50,000 to go free. Once he did, Winner was required to wear an electronic-monitoring bracelet, adhere to a curfew and submit to random drug testing.
When prosecutors charged Winner in the third pending case in April, Judge Adam Bourgeois Jr. dubbed Winner "a danger" and denied the man bond. A fourth case filed last month came with $25,000 bail.
During a hearing Wednesday, Judge Howard reduced the no-bail order on the third pending case to $100,000 bail — bringing Winner's new total bail amount to $625,000. Should he post bond, the judge said, he'll once more be required to wear an electronic-monitoring bracelet and adhere to a curfew.
The reduction came in response to a petition filed by Weinberg, who argued that since Winner no longer owns Soleil Tanning Salon, prosecutors can no longer consider Winner a threat.
"The state thinks of Mr. Winner as a bad guy," Weinberg said. "But he is still presumed innocent" until proven guilty.
Assistant State's Attorney Mikki Miller argued that there's even more reason to hold Winner without bail now than in April. He was previously charged in three cases, Miller said, but now there are four — and prosecutors have identified additional victims they plan to highlight during the trial process.
One of the alleged victims — whose case is beyond the statute of limitation for filing charges — claims Winner raped her in suburban Mt. Prospect in 2001.
The woman went to work one night at a local bar thinking she was on the schedule, Miller said, only to realize it was her night off once she arrived. The victim ordered a Miller Lite and began talking to Winner, a patron.
According to prosecutors, the woman had a quirk where she always liked to keep a beer bottle's label facing her as she drank. The woman headed to the bathroom at one point, Miller said, and returned to notice the beer bottle turned sideways.
The woman had a sip of the drink, which had been left alone with Winner, and thought it tasted strange, prosecutors said. The woman then became light-headed, according to Miller, and headed outside for air; Winner followed.
When the woman awoke, she was inside her car with her underwear and clothing ripped off, covered in bruises and bite marks, prosecutors said. The woman's boss allegedly told her not to press charges because it would be bad publicity for the bar. That victim later told prosecutors she recognized Winner from a recent news article as her attacker.
Another alleged victim, whose case is also past the statute of limitations, claims Winner attacked her inside their West Loop condo building in 2008. The two became friends after the woman got locked out of her condo one day, and Winner helped her break back in, prosecutors said.
Winner offered the woman a free tan at his salon in the process, according to Miller.
While smoking marijuana with the woman one night, Winner is accused of grabbing and kissing the victim against her will and telling her, "I know you want it. Just let it happen," prosecutors said. The woman was later bruised.
At Wednesday's hearing inside the Leighton Criminal Courthouse, 2600 S. California Ave., Weinberg argued that Winner should be given a reduced bond, in part, because he complied with all of his conditions of bond while free from October to April.
Miller in response highlighted an incident from March of this year, in which Winner is accused of getting into a fight with a West Loop resident and repeatedly calling the man a "faggot."
The man, who lives next door to Winner's now-shuttered salon, noticed Winner inside the lobby of the man's building on March 25, prosecutors said. When the man asked Winner why he was there, Winner argued with the man and began hurling slurs, Miller said.
Police were called, but Winner was not arrested, and no charges have been filed.
Weinberg in court said Winner was inside the lobby to investigate a leak that was impacting his salon. Weinberg claimed the condo resident had an attitude with Winner and became confrontational.
Winner is expected to be arraigned on his fourth pending rape case Aug. 17. All four cases will be heard by Judge Howard moving forward.
Related:
• Marc Winner Raped Woman In His Mom's Edgewater Home, Officials Say
• Accused Rapist Marc Winner Could Face 4th Rape Case, Prosecutors Say
• City Shuts Down Accused Serial Rapist Marc Winner's Tanning Salon
• Accused Rapist Marc Winner Attacked in County Jail, Officials Say
• Accused Serial Rapist's Tanning Salon Operating Illegally, City Says
• Accused Serial Rapist's Tanning Salon Should Be Shut Down, Alderman Says
• Suspected Serial Rapist Marc Winner 'Anxious' For Trial, Attorney Says
• Tanning Salon Owner Marc Winner Raped Me in 2001 But Went Free, Woman Says
• Salon Owner Charged In 3 Rape Cases Denied Bail, 'A Danger,' Judge Says
• West Loop Tanning Salon Owner Marc Winner Charged In 3rd Rape Case
• Tanning Salon Owner Allegedly Raped 2nd Woman After Judge Tossed 2013 Case
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