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 Related Press

19 May 2022, 17:42

• 3 min read

PEKIN, Unwell. -- 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.

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

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

In Might 2016, police and fireplace personnel responded to a pharmacy car parking zone in Morton where Travis Reinking advised officers he believed singer Taylor Swift was stalking him and had hacked into his cellphone.

Stories the Journal Star obtained in 2018 showed Travis Reinking was dropped at a Peoria hospital for an analysis after that incident and had agreed to go to the hospital.

However Jeffrey Reinking’s lawyer, Kevin Sullivan, argued at trial that his shopper didn’t know his son had been treated for mental well being points at the hospital. Sullivan said he knew his son was brought to the hospital but didn’t know why, and was not guilty of the charge.

As a result of the younger Reinking had his firearm proprietor’s identification card revoked by Illinois State Police, he could not legally have weapons throughout the state. Travis Reinking surrendered his guns to his father, who later returned them to him at some point earlier than the deadly taking pictures at a Waffle House in Nashville, prosecutors mentioned.

The assault-style rifle he utilized in that attack, an AR-15, was one of many guns his father had returned to him.

Travis Reinking was sentenced in February to life in jail with out the potential of parole after being convicted of 4 counts of first-degree homicide and different prices. He opened fireplace contained in the restaurant on April 22, 2018, killing Taurean Sanderlin, 29; Joey Perez, 20; Akilah Dasilva, 23; and DeEbony Groves, 21.

Evidence at Travis Reinking's trial showed he had schizophrenia and suffered delusions for years, believing unknown people had been tormenting him. He contacted legislation enforcement several instances 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 meet with then-President Donald Trump.