Offender Record · OFF-2026-055
Brian James Dugan (photo from the Radford University biography)
Brian James Dugan
Sex
Male
Race
White
Height
5'11"
Weight
201 lbs
Hair
Brown
Eyes
Brown
Born
1956
Custody
Incarcerated
States
IL, CA, NH
Distinguishing featuresTattoo on left arm
Custody
Incarcerated at Big Muddy Correctional Center · #A60862
Custody record at the facility
Admission date: November 25, 1985; projected discharge date: INELIGIBLE (life sentence without parole). As of October 2025, Dugan continues to serve his sentences at Big Muddy Correctional Center.
This record documents arrests, charges and convictions reported by courts, law enforcement agencies and news organizations. Every statement is tied to a cited source with an archived copy. A charge is an accusation, not proof of guilt; a person charged is presumed innocent unless convicted. Solve the Case does not allege that this person committed any offense beyond what the cited records state, and this record is not a suggestion that the person is connected to any unsolved case. How records are built, corrected and removed.
Summary of the record
Brian James Dugan, born September 23, 1956, is an American serial killer convicted of three murders between 1983 and 1985 in Illinois. He pleaded guilty to the murders of Melissa Ackerman, a 7-year-old girl, and Donna Schnorr, a 27-year-old woman, and was sentenced to life on November 19, 1985. He was later convicted of the rape and murder of 10-year-old Jeanine Nicarico in 2009. He is currently incarcerated at Big Muddy Correctional Center in Illinois with no possibility of release.
Documented Arrests, Charges and Convictions
Dispositions are shown exactly as the cited records report them. Pending charges are updated when a court acts; a record with no remaining conviction or pending charge is removed from the site.
Offense date Feb 25, 1983, Naperville, Illinois
First-degree murder and rape of Jeanine Nicarico
DuPage County State's Attorney · DuPage County Circuit Court · Arrested Jun 03, 1985 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Life without possibility of parole (originally death, commuted 2011 when Illinois abolished capital punishment)
Dugan abducted, raped, and beat to death ten-year-old Jeanine Nicarico on February 25, 1983, in Naperville, Illinois. In his guilty plea, Dugan admitted he alone abducted Jeanine, raped her and fatally beat her with a tire iron. He entered a plea of guilty in September 2009 to the murder of Nicarico after having previously confessed to the crime.
SourcesMurder of Jeanine Nicarico; Life or death? Jury weighs fate of Brian Dugan; Brian Dugan
Offense date Jul 15, 1984, Geneva, Illinois
Rape and murder of Donna Schnorr
Kane County State's Attorney · Kane County Circuit Court · Docket 85CF82 · Arrested Jun 03, 1985 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Life without possibility of parole
In 1984, Dugan was driving around Geneva, Illinois when he observed 27-year-old Donna Schnorr stopped at a red traffic light. Dugan followed Donna and eventually ran her car off the road. Dugan dragged Donna out of her car, beat and raped her and murdered her by drowning her in a nearby quarry.
SourcesLife or death? Jury weighs fate of Brian Dugan; People v. Cruz :: 1994 :: Supreme Court of Illinois Decisions; Brian Dugan
Offense date May 06, 1985, Aurora, Illinois
Kidnapping and rape of 21-year-old woman (Sharon Grajek)
Kane/DuPage County · Illinois Circuit Court · Arrested Jun 03, 1985 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: 155 years (part of combined 155-year sentence for sex attacks)
He followed a 21-year-old Aurora woman home and, after overpowering her with a knife, drove his victim while blindfolded and bound to a secluded spot and raped her.
SourcesLife or death? Jury weighs fate of Brian Dugan
Offense date May 28, 1985, Aurora, Illinois
Attempted kidnapping of 19-year-old woman
Kane County · Illinois Circuit Court · Arrested Jun 03, 1985 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Included in 155-year sentence
Dugan tried to abduct a 19-year-old Geneva girl walking along Route 31. She escaped his headlock and fled across the street.
SourcesLife or death? Jury weighs fate of Brian Dugan
Offense date May 29, 1985, Aurora, Illinois
Kidnapping and rape of 16-year-old girl
Kane County · Illinois Circuit Court · Arrested Jun 03, 1985 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Included in 155-year sentence
He forced a 16-year-old Aurora girl into his car as she walked alone down a residential street. He covered her face with a small blanket, put a belt around her neck and drove her to a secluded spot, where he raped her.
SourcesLife or death? Jury weighs fate of Brian Dugan
Offense date Jun 02, 1985, Somonauk, Illinois
Abduction, rape and murder of Melissa Ackerman
La Salle County State's Attorney · La Salle County Circuit Court · Arrested Jun 03, 1985 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: Life without possibility of parole
On June 2, 1985, around noon, Dugan noticed Melissa Ackerman, an eight-year-old girl and her playmate riding bicycles in Somonauk. Dugan approached and grabbed and threw them in his auto. Ackerman's playmate escaped from the car and Dugan drove off with Ackerman. He made Ackerman sit on the front passenger-side floor of the car and covered her with a sleeping bag. He drove to a wooded area, tied Ackerman's hands behind her back, and anally sexually assaulted her. He then raped her and suffocated her by drowning her.
SourcesPeople v. Cruz :: 1994 :: Supreme Court of Illinois Decisions; Radford University serial killer biography: Dugan, Brian James; Brian Dugan
Pattern and Background
Victim counts and the pattern of the offenses as stated by courts, agencies and the cited reporting. Suspected counts are what officials have said publicly, not a finding of this site.
3
Victims convicted
0
Victims confessed
0
Victims suspected
Active years
1983–1985
Victim profile
Children, Young women, Strangers
Stated motive
Sexual, Thrill
Range from home
regional
Confessed
Yes
Education
some high school
Marital history
Never married
Children
0
Places Lived, Worked and Frequented
Each place and date range comes from a cited record. Dates marked approximate are as reported. Know a place that is missing? Use Edit record under the photo; a moderator reviews it before it appears.
CA
California
approx. 1974 – 1974 · Served 30 days for petty theft and drug-related charges
IL
Lisle, Illinois
approx. 1967 – 1972 · DuPage County
Batavia, Illinois
approx. 1972 – 1974 · High school (dropped out sophomore year, age 16)
Batavia, Illinois
1972 – Dec 15, 1972 · Kane County Youth Home · Kane County Youth Home; released December 15, 1972
Aurora, Illinois
approx. 1972 – 1985 · East side; lived in $50-a-week rooming house by 1985
Batavia, Illinois
approx. 1972 – 1972 · Chicago suburb on border of DuPage and Kane Counties
Villa Park, Illinois
approx. 1975 – 1975 · DuPage County; lived with sister Hilary
Illinois
1979 – 1982 · Menard Correctional Center · Served from 1979 to 1982; claimed to be sexually abused during this time
Illinois
Nov 25, 1985 – 1987 · Pontiac Correctional Facility · Admitted November 25, 1985; stabbed 30 times on July 30, 1987
Crest Hill, Illinois
1987 – Sep 2024 · Stateville Correctional Center · Transferred to Stateville; housed in protective custody unit; main facility depopulated by September 2024
Ina, Illinois
Sep 2024 – present · Big Muddy River Correctional Center · Medium-security facility in Jefferson County; inmate A60862; no possibility of parole
NH
Nashua, New Hampshire
approx. 1956 – 1967
Known Vehicles
Vehicles and approximate dates of ownership or use, as reported in the cited records. A photo next to a vehicle is the vehicle itself as published.
1985 Blue Chevrolet Impala – Blue Chevrolet Impala used in abductions
approx. 1985 – 1985
Vehicle used in May-June 1985 crime spree including kidnapping Melissa Ackerman
1983 Green Plymouth Volare – Green Volare used in Jeanine Nicarico abduction
approx. 1983 – 1983
Described by Dugan as the vehicle he was driving on the day of Jeanine Nicarico's murder
Timeline
Sep 23, 1956
Brian James Dugan born September 23, 1956 in Nashua, New Hampshire.
1967
Family moved to village of Lisle in DuPage County, Illinois.
Jan 1972
Arrested for burglary and put under court supervision at age 15.
Dec 15, 1972
Released from Kane County Youth Home after serving time for trespassing and suspected home burglary; three days later committed robbery of Kentucky Fried Chicken with friend.
Dec 28, 1972
Police arrested Brian and friend for the KFC robbery and subsequent burglaries in Dubuque County, Iowa; both confessed.
Mar 05, 1976
Arrested for elementary school arson; pleaded guilty to fire but other charges dropped; received sentence of one to three years but served less than seven months.
Jan 30, 1977
Broke into two churches in Aurora; pleaded guilty to two church burglaries and did six months in jail when actual sentence was two to six years.
Sep 19, 1977
Paroled from church burglary sentence.
Feb 25, 1983
10-year-old Jeanine Nicarico abducted in broad daylight from her home in Naperville, Illinois.
Jul 15, 1984
Dugan forced nurse Donna Schnorr off the road in his car in Geneva; beat her, raped her, and drowned her in a quarry.
1985
After his arrest for the Ackerman and Schnorr murders, Dugan gave a statement through his attorney to Illinois Department of Criminal Investigation officers that he had abducted, raped and murdered Jeanine Nicarico hypothetically.
May 06, 1985
Dugan abducted and raped a 21-year-old woman in North Aurora.
May 28, 1985
Dugan attempted to abduct a 19-year-old woman on a roadside in Aurora but she escaped.
May 29, 1985
Dugan forced a 16-year-old girl into his car after threatening her with a tire iron; drove her to Will County where he put a belt around her neck and raped her, then took her home.
Jun 02, 1985
Dugan abducted 7-year-old Melissa Ackerman while she and a friend were riding bikes in Somonauk; he was a 28-year-old stock handler living in a $50-a-week rooming house in Aurora; bound the girl's hands, raped her and drowned her in a creek.
Jun 03, 1985
Brian Dugan arrested on June 3, 1985.
Nov 16, 1985
Dugan confessed to the Ackerman and Schnorr sexual assaults and murders, two other sexual assaults and an attempted abduction.
Nov 19, 1985
Dugan found guilty of Ackerman's kidnapping, rape and murder and several sexual assaults, sentenced to life with consecutive years; also found guilty of Schnorr's kidnapping, rape and murder and sentenced to a second life term; sentenced to two life sentences plus 215 years on November 19, 1985.
Nov 25, 1985
Begins serving his sentence at the Pontiac (IL) Correctional Facility.
Jul 30, 1987
Brian Dugan is stabbed 30 times while in the Pontiac Correctional Facility.
2002
Authorities in DuPage County disclose new DNA information that is more accurate than previous tests and match Dugan to the rape and murder of Jeanine Nicarico.
Jan 2005
Dugan was charged with the murder of Jeanine Nicarico.
Jul 22, 2009
Dugan pleaded guilty to rape and murder of Jeanine Nicarico.
Nov 11, 2009
DuPage County jury sentenced Brian Dugan to death for the rape and murder of Jeanine Nicarico 26 years earlier.
2011
Dugan's death sentence was commuted to life in prison after Illinois passed a law abolishing the death penalty.
Sources
Solve the Case is never the original source. Each item below is the public record a statement on this page rests on, with an archived copy where one exists.
News report · Wikipedia ·
Brian Dugan“Brian James Dugan (born September 23, 1956) is an American convicted rapist and serial killer active between 1983 and 1985 in Chicago's western suburbs.”
News report · Courthouse News ·
Serial Killer Fears Inmates Will Murder Him“Dugan is currently held in a protective custody unit at Stateville Correctional Center in Crest Hill, Ill.”
News report · Wikipedia ·
Murder of Jeanine Nicarico“On November 11, 2009, after deliberating about 10 hours over two days, a DuPage County jury sentenced Brian Dugan to death for the rape and murder of Jeanine Nicarico 26 years earlier.”
Other · Radford University, Department of Psychology ·
Radford University serial killer biography: Dugan, Brian James“Brian James Dugan born 09/23/1956 in Nashua, New Hampshire; extensive timeline of arrests, convictions, and murders from 1972-2008.”
Other government record · Illinois Department of Corrections ·
Illinois Department of Corrections Internet Inmate Status“A60862 - DUGAN, BRIAN J.; Parent Institution: BIG MUDDY CORRECTIONAL CENTER; Admission Date: 11/25/1985; Projected Discharge Date: INELIGIBLE.”
News report · Daily Herald ·
Life or death? Jury weighs fate of Brian Dugan“He received two life terms in prison for the murders and 155 years for the monthlong sex attacks.”
Court record · Justia ·
People v. Cruz :: 1994 :: Supreme Court of Illinois Decisions“On November 19, 1985, Dugan was found guilty of Ackerman's kidnapping, rape and murder, the several sexual assaults and was sentenced to life with a consecutive term of years. On that same date, Dugan was also found guilty of Schnorr's kidnapping, rape and murder and sentenced to a second life term.”
Discussion
Casual discussion about this record on the community forum. The facts live on this page: to add a place, a vehicle or a source, use the Edit record button under the photo so a moderator can review it. Please name no one else, never name a victim, and do not connect the person to any case not listed here.Open the topic on the forum
Corrections and removal. If a charge on this page has been dismissed, acquitted, overturned, pardoned or expunged, or any fact is wrong, tell us through the correction form. Corrections are free, reviewed within five business days, and a record with no remaining conviction or pending charge is removed. Information here may not be used for decisions about employment, housing, credit, insurance or any purpose covered by the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and never to harass, threaten or harm anyone. Where a source is an offender registry, that information is reproduced as of the date shown and is subject to the conditions of use of that registry.