Man who told estranged wife ‘If I can’t have them neither can you’ gets life for killing their kids

WAUKEGAN, Ill. (AP) — A suburban Chicago man who pleaded guilty but mentally ill for drowning his three young children has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. A Lake County judge sentenced 36-year-old Jason Karels of Round Lake Beach on Friday. Karels had pleaded guilty in December to three counts of first-degree murder and admitted drowning 5-year-old Bryant Karels, 3-year-old Cassidy Karels and 2-year-old Gideon Karels on June 13, 2022. Prosecutors say officers sent to his home to check on the youngsters’ welfare found a note for Karels’ estranged wife reading, “If I can’t have them neither can you.” Karels was arrested after fleeing from police.