A Streator man was indicted Tuesday for murder and for firing shots that hit and/or missed several others May 6 in Streator.
Malcolm J. Whitfield, 29, of Streator (also listed as a resident of DeKalb), was indicted Tuesday in La Salle County Circuit Court for first-degree murder plus additional counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm and aggravated battery of a firearm. He already was in custody for allegedly firing a May 6 shot that missed a man, and now is charged for firing another shot that took a woman’s life.
Soon after a La Salle County grand jury approved the murder charge, the La Salle County Circuit Clerk disclosed new filings that alleges Whitfield shot and killed a 35-year-old woman whose name remains undisclosed. (The criminal information was not immediately unsealed.)
If convicted of murder, Whitfield faces 20-60 years in prison with no possibility of probation and no time off for good behavior. A full presentation of Whitfield’s sentencing range – he faces a total of nine felony counts – comes Friday when he appears before Chief Judge H. Chris Ryan Jr.
Whitfield remains held on $1 million in La Salle County Jail awaiting trial for allegedly firing a shot that missed a Streator man on May 6.
There actually were two shooting incidents May 6 at separate locations in Streator. In the first, no one was struck or injured. During the second, reported in the 100 block of West Hickory Street, three people were struck.
Three victims were taken to OSF Center for Health-Streator for initial treatment. Two were then transferred to OSF St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria. The 35-year-old died from her injuries during a surgery.
Authorities said they identified people of interest who fled the area. Days later, Whitfield and 36-year-old Rachael N. Carter, of Streator, were apprehended in Memphis, Tennessee and later extradited to La Salle County.
Carter now is charged with two counts of unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon (three to seven years in prison) plus one count of preventing the apprehension of a fugitive, a Class 4 felony carrying one to three years.
