Illinois man convicted of giving son rifle he used to kill 4

An Illinois man faces up to three years in jail after being convicted of illegally giving his son an assault-style rifle he later used to shoot and kill four folks in 2018 at a Waffle House in Tennessee

ByThe Associated Press

19 Might 2022, 17:42

• 3 min read

PEKIN, Ailing. -- An Illinois man faces as much as three years in jail after being convicted of illegally giving his son an assault-style rifle he later used to shoot and kill four people in 2018 at a Waffle Home in Tennessee.

A decide convicted Jeffrey Reinking last week of illegal supply of a firearm to a person who had been treated for mental illness inside the previous five years, the ( Peoria) Journal Star reported. He remains free on bond pending his sentencing, which is ready for June 17.

During Reinking's Could 13 bench trial, Tazewell County prosecutors argued that the rural Morton, Illinois, man knew his son, Travis Reinking, had undergone psychological health therapy in 2016.

In Could 2016, police and fireplace personnel responded to a pharmacy parking lot in Morton the place Travis Reinking instructed officers he believed singer Taylor Swift was stalking him and had hacked into his cellphone.

Studies the Journal Star obtained in 2018 showed Travis Reinking was delivered to a Peoria hospital for an evaluation after that incident and had agreed to go to the hospital.

But Jeffrey Reinking’s attorney, Kevin Sullivan, argued at trial that his client didn’t know his son had been handled for mental well being points on the hospital. Sullivan mentioned he knew his son was brought to the hospital but didn’t know why, and was not responsible of the cost.

As a result of the younger Reinking had his firearm proprietor’s identification card revoked by Illinois State Police, he couldn't legally have guns within the state. Travis Reinking surrendered his guns to his father, who later returned them to him at some point before the fatal shooting at a Waffle House in Nashville, prosecutors said.

The assault-style rifle he used in that attack, an AR-15, was one of the weapons his father had returned to him.

Travis Reinking was sentenced in February to life in jail with out the opportunity of parole after being convicted of four counts of first-degree murder and different costs. He opened fire inside the restaurant on April 22, 2018, killing Taurean Sanderlin, 29; Joey Perez, 20; Akilah Dasilva, 23; and DeEbony Groves, 21.

Proof at Travis Reinking's trial showed he had schizophrenia and suffered delusions for years, believing unknown folks had been tormenting him. He contacted regulation enforcement several occasions to report that he was being threatened, stalked and harassed.

In July 2017, he was detained by the Secret Service after he ventured unarmed into a restricted space on the White House grounds and demanded to fulfill with then-President Donald Trump.