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 individuals in 2018 at a Waffle Home in Tennessee

ByThe Related Press

19 Might 2022, 17:42

• 3 min read

PEKIN, Sick. -- 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.

A judge convicted Jeffrey Reinking final week of unlawful delivery of a firearm to an individual who had been treated for psychological illness within the previous 5 years, the ( Peoria) Journal Star reported. He stays free on bond pending his sentencing, which is set 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 hearth personnel responded to a pharmacy parking lot in Morton where Travis Reinking told officers he believed singer Taylor Swift was stalking him and had hacked into his cellphone.

Experiences the Journal Star obtained in 2018 confirmed 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 psychological well being issues at the hospital. Sullivan said he knew his son was delivered to the hospital however didn’t know why, and was not guilty of the cost.

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

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

Travis Reinking was sentenced in February to life in prison without the opportunity of parole after being convicted of four counts of first-degree murder and different expenses. He opened fireplace inside 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 were tormenting him. He contacted law enforcement a number of 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.