October 14, 2009 – The accused “Red Line Robber” will go on trial next February. At a status hearing on Tuesday, Magistrate Judge John W. Darrah set trial for February 8 for Lance Dennie. The 44-year-old south side man is charged with seven counts of bank robbery, including two robberies of the Chase branch at Marina City.

Dennie was arrested on August 29 and pleaded not guilty on September 29. He is currently at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in downtown Chicago. (Left) Surveillance photo from March 10 robbery of Chase branch at Marina City.

The FBI nicknamed the suspect “Red Line Robber” because the robberies were near stops on the CTA Red Line. Dennie lives just south of the Red Line station at 95th Street. Besides the two robberies at Marina City, two other robberies happened a few blocks away.

At the status hearing, Darrah also agreed to give Dennie’s court-appointed attorney more time to review the case and file pre-trial motions. Public defender Robert Seeder now has until November 12.

During a robbery on March 13 at a Chase branch on South Wabash Avenue, Dennie is also accused of forcing a bank employee to accompany him to avoid apprehension. According to a motion filed by Seeder on October 7, that count carries a mandatory minimum prison sentence of ten years.

 Related story: Accused ‘Red Line Robber’ pleads not guilty