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ST. CHARLES, Mo. (AP) -- A Chicago-area man accused of shooting his wife and three children to death in the family's sport utility vehicle abruptly dropped an effort Tuesday to fight extradition to Illinois.

  Christopher Vaughn, 32, flanked by his attorneys and dressed in an orange jail uniform, told Judge Terry Cundiff he consulted with attorneys before consenting to the transfer during a brief appearance in a St. Charles County courtroom.

  Vaughn's attorney, David Waltrip, said his client elected to end his fight against extradition from Missouri after losing a related court hearing on Friday and because an appeal of that decision would be time-consuming. Vaughn made the decision after he and his parents were briefed on legal options over the weekend.

  Vaughn "is ready to go back to the state of Illinois to defend himself," Waltrip said.

  Vaughn arrived Tuesday night at the Will County Adult Detention Facility, according to Will County sheriff's spokesman Pat Barry.

  Will County State's Attorney James Glasgow said his office was prepared to move quickly to bring Vaughn to trial. The earliest he could appear in a Will County court was Thursday, Glasgow said.

  "I am pleased that we will not have to go through a lengthy extradition battle that would have only served to delay Christopher Vaughn's inevitable return to Illinois," Glasgow said in a statement.

  Vaughn was being held without bond on eight first-degree murder counts in the June 14 deaths of Kimberly Vaughn, 32, and their children, Abigayle, 12, Cassandra, 11, and Blake, 8.

  Vaughn, of Oswego, Ill., was arrested June 23 at a funeral home in the St. Louis suburb of St. Charles just hours before a memorial service for his wife and children.

  "It's been a tough time for Chris. He's had to get some backbone," Waltrip said. "I told him he has to be strong. I think he can do that."

  St. Charles County Assistant Prosecutor John DeVouton said he wasn't surprised by Vaughn's change of heart.

  "We always felt he should go to Illinois and start the legal process," he said.

  On Friday, a judge rejected Vaughn's bid to question an investigator who signed the complaint to send him back to Illinois.

  Waltrip wanted to depose Illinois State Police Sgt. Gary Lawson as part of an effort to block extradition, arguing that the complaint Lawson signed failed to meet Missouri's legal requirements to link Vaughn to the killings.

  But St. Charles County Associate Judge William Lohmar sided with prosecutors, who said Missouri law only allows defendants to challenge whether extradition papers are in order, not dig into the underlying charges.

  Kimberly Vaughn and her children were found dead in the family's parked sport utility vehicle along a service road near Channahon, Ill., about 40 miles southwest of Chicago, after a wounded Christopher Vaughn flagged down a motorist.

  Vaughn, a computer security consultant, had superficial gunshot wounds in the leg and arm. Kimberly Vaughn was shot once and the children each were shot twice, and his 9mm handgun was found at the scene, authorities said.

  Illinois authorities have not divulged a possible motive for the slayings, saying only that interviews, forensic evidence, computer files and phone records led them to conclude that Christopher Vaughn killed his family.

  (Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

**Previous Story**

ST. CHARLES, Mo. (KMOV/AP) -- The man accused of killing his wife and three children is expected back in a Missouri courtroom this afternoon.

Prosecutors want Christopher Vaughn sent to Illinois to face charges.

However, Vaughn has been fighting extradition to Will County, Illinois, where he faces first-degree murder charges.

He is accused of killing his wife, two daughters and his son.

Authorities say there will be an extradition hearing 1:30 p.m. today.

Sources say Vaughn is expected to give up his extradition fight.

News 4 will be at the hearing and we will bring you more information as it becomes available and we will have a complete report on News 4 at 5 p.m.

**PREVIOUS STORY**

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) -- Just hours before a man was to attend a memorial service for his wife and three young children, authorities arrested him at a Missouri funeral home on charges of gunning down his family in their sport utility vehicle.

(KMOV)

  Police initially said Christopher Vaughn, 32, was not a suspect in the killings that were discovered June 14 after Vaughn flagged down a motorist on a service road in Channahon, about 40 miles southwest of Chicago.

  Vaughn, who works as a computer forensic adviser, had been shot in the thigh. His wife, Kimberly, 34, was shot once, while each their children -- Abigayle, 12; Cassandra, 11; and Blake, 8 -- were shot twice. His handgun was found at the scene, authorities said.

  Prosecutor James Glasgow, who declined to discuss possible motives, said Vaughn with charged with two murder counts per victim. One set of counts alleges he shot with intent to kill and the other alleges he shot knowing that it was likely to cause death or great bodily harm.

  Before he was arrested, Vaughn had voluntarily met with investigators three times to answer questions.

  Authorities would not say what evidence tipped the balance enough to allow them to seek an arrest warrant from a judge late Friday. The charges were built from numerous interviews, forensic evidence, computer files and phone records, authorities said.

  Glasgow said he has 120 days to decide whether to seek the death penalty.

  "We are hopeful that with the issuance of these charges that Kimberly Vaughn and her three beautiful children can truly rest in peace," said Glasgow. "Everyone who came in contact with this case was moved by what they saw."

  Word of Vaughn's arrest circulated among the mourners as the service, hundreds of miles away at New Hope Presbyterian Church in St. Charles, Mo., drew to a close.

  "We should not be here today, but the events of this past week have been thrust upon us, events which are indescribable and unspeakable," said the Rev. Christopher James.

  The church was a special place for Kimberly Vaughn and the children; she attended since its 1994 inception and it was the place the kids were later baptized. Kimberly Vaughn's parents still attend the church.

  The service included no caskets. Kimberly Vaughn and her children had been quietly buried in a nearby cemetery to avoid media attention.

  Photographs showing the kids at play or their mother's days playing volleyball filled four poster boards at the church. Only one of the roughly 100 pictures -- a small snapshot of the family -- showed Christopher Vaughn.

  The Vaughns, who once lived in Missouri, moved from Washington state to the Chicago area about a year ago. They lived briefly in Aurora before relocating to a spacious home in Oswego.

  Glasgow said he hoped Vaughn would be extradited from Missouri to Illinois soon. He said Vaughn indicated he intended to fight extradition.

  Phone messages seeking comment were left Saturday at the offices of Christopher Vaughn's attorney in Missouri. Vaughn was being held without bond at St. Charles County Detention Center, authorities said.

  (Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

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