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 people in 2018 at a Waffle House in Tennessee

ByThe Associated Press

19 May 2022, 17:42

• 3 min read

PEKIN, Ill. -- 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 four folks in 2018 at a Waffle Home in Tennessee.

A decide convicted Jeffrey Reinking final week of unlawful supply of a firearm to an individual who had been handled for psychological sickness inside the past five years, the ( Peoria) Journal Star reported. He remains free on bond pending his sentencing, which is about 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 mental well being remedy in 2016.

In Might 2016, police and fire personnel responded to a pharmacy parking zone in Morton the place 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 dropped at a Peoria hospital for an analysis after that incident and had agreed to go to the hospital.

But Jeffrey Reinking’s lawyer, Kevin Sullivan, argued at trial that his shopper didn’t know his son had been treated for mental health issues at the hospital. Sullivan said he knew his son was dropped at the hospital however didn’t know why, and was not guilty of the cost.

Because the younger Reinking had his firearm proprietor’s identification card revoked by Illinois State Police, he could not legally have weapons within the state. Travis Reinking surrendered his guns to his father, who later returned them to him in some unspecified time in the future before the fatal shooting at a Waffle Home in Nashville, prosecutors said.

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

Travis Reinking was sentenced in February to life in prison with out the potential for parole after being convicted of four counts of first-degree murder and different prices. He opened fire 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 folks had been 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 space on the White Home grounds and demanded to satisfy with then-President Donald Trump.