College Student Killed in 'Targeted Crime'

Sept. 8, 2008 — -- After a weekend spent investigating the death of a 19-year-old college student found shot dead in his home, police in a sleepy Chicago suburb remain stumped with neither motive and nor arrests in a crime that has shocked the community.

Joseph Ziegler, 19, a former high school football player, described as a quiet, mature college student who wanted to become a police officer, was shot in the head and killed Thursday in his family's home in a normally tranquil suburban neighborhood.

"Investigators have been working since Friday," said police Lt. Rich Russo. "They're following up on a lot of leads and speaking to a lot of people at this point."

Police have not yet determined a motive but characterized the death as a purposeful attack, Russo said.

"All the signs point to it being a targeted crime and not a random home invasion thing," he said.

Police said that usually the town, located about 30 miles northwest of Chicago, has only one homicide a year; Ziegler's death makes it the second homicide.

"It's a quiet neighborhood. This is definitely an unusual occurrence," Russo said.

Ziegler played football at Schaumburg High School, from which he graduated in 2007.

"He was well-liked and looked at as a leader on the football team," said Tom Petersen, a spokesman at Township High School District 211.

Ziegler's death dealt Mark Stilling a double blow; he is both the Schaumburg High School's football coach and the school's psychologist.

Stilling characterized Ziegler's death as a "shock" to the high school community, which pulls students from both Hoffman Estates and Schaumburg, Ill., another suburb.

"I've worked here 10 years and I haven't had any of my former students lose their lives... certainly none so tragically or so violently," he said. "This isn't something that's commonplace

Stilling coached Ziegler, who was the team's safety, for four years on the high school's varsity football team.

"As a football player, he was a tremendous hitter. He was a great tackler," Stilling said. "He was intelligent. His work ethic was admirable. ... It's really sad to see something tragic happen to someone with so much potential."