Illinois man convicted of giving son rifle he used to kill 4

An Illinois man faces as much as three years in jail after being convicted of illegally giving his son an assault-style rifle he later used to shoot and kill four individuals in 2018 at a Waffle Home in Tennessee

ByThe Associated Press

19 May 2022, 17:42

• 3 min read

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

A choose convicted Jeffrey Reinking final week of illegal supply of a firearm to a person who had been handled for mental illness inside the previous five years, the ( Peoria) Journal Star reported. He stays free on bond pending his sentencing, which is about for June 17.

Throughout Reinking's May 13 bench trial, Tazewell County prosecutors argued that the rural Morton, Illinois, man knew his son, Travis Reinking, had undergone mental well being treatment in 2016.

In Could 2016, police and fireplace personnel responded to a pharmacy car parking zone in Morton where Travis Reinking instructed 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 delivered to a Peoria hospital for an analysis after that incident and had agreed to go to the hospital.

However Jeffrey Reinking’s attorney, Kevin Sullivan, argued at trial that his consumer didn’t know his son had been treated for mental well being issues on the hospital. Sullivan said he knew his son was dropped at the hospital however didn’t know why, and was not responsible 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 inside the state. Travis Reinking surrendered his weapons to his father, who later returned them to him sooner or later before the fatal taking pictures at a Waffle House in Nashville, prosecutors mentioned.

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 jail without the opportunity of parole after being convicted of four counts of first-degree homicide and different costs. 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 confirmed he had schizophrenia and suffered delusions for years, believing unknown individuals were 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 Home grounds and demanded to meet with then-President Donald Trump.