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 4 folks in 2018 at a Waffle Home in Tennessee

ByThe Related Press

19 Might 2022, 17:42

• 3 min read

PEKIN, Ailing. -- An Illinois man faces up to three years in prison after being convicted of illegally giving his son an assault-style rifle he later used to shoot and kill 4 folks in 2018 at a Waffle House in Tennessee.

A decide convicted Jeffrey Reinking last week of unlawful supply of a firearm to a person who had been handled for mental sickness within the previous 5 years, the ( Peoria) Journal Star reported. He remains free on bond pending his sentencing, which is set for June 17.

Throughout 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 treatment in 2016.

In May 2016, police and hearth 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.

Reports the Journal Star obtained in 2018 confirmed 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 legal professional, Kevin Sullivan, argued at trial that his client didn’t know his son had been handled for psychological well being issues on the hospital. Sullivan said he knew his son was dropped at the hospital but didn’t know why, and was not guilty of the charge.

Because the youthful Reinking had his firearm owner’s identification card revoked by Illinois State Police, he couldn't legally have guns inside the state. Travis Reinking surrendered his guns to his father, who later returned them to him at some point earlier than the deadly shooting at a Waffle Home in Nashville, prosecutors mentioned.

The assault-style rifle he used 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 prison without the possibility of parole after being convicted of four counts of first-degree homicide and different charges. He opened hearth 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 folks were tormenting him. He contacted regulation enforcement a number of 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 area on the White Home grounds and demanded to fulfill with then-President Donald Trump.