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 4 individuals in 2018 at a Waffle House 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 four individuals in 2018 at a Waffle House in Tennessee.

A judge convicted Jeffrey Reinking final week of unlawful delivery of a firearm to an individual who had been handled for mental sickness within the previous 5 years, the ( Peoria) Journal Star reported. He stays free on bond pending his sentencing, which is ready for June 17.

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

In Might 2016, police and hearth personnel responded to a pharmacy car parking zone in Morton where Travis Reinking informed officers he believed singer Taylor Swift was stalking him and had hacked into his cellphone.

Reviews the Journal Star obtained in 2018 confirmed Travis Reinking was dropped at a Peoria hospital for an evaluation after that incident and had agreed to go to the hospital.

But Jeffrey Reinking’s lawyer, Kevin Sullivan, argued at trial that his consumer didn’t know his son had been treated for psychological health points at the hospital. Sullivan stated he knew his son was delivered to the hospital but didn’t know why, and was not responsible 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 throughout the state. Travis Reinking surrendered his guns to his father, who later returned them to him in some unspecified time in the future earlier than the fatal capturing at a Waffle House in Nashville, prosecutors stated.

The assault-style rifle he used 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 without the possibility of parole after being convicted of 4 counts of first-degree murder and other 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 confirmed he had schizophrenia and suffered delusions for years, believing unknown people were tormenting him. He contacted legislation enforcement several 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 right into a restricted space on the White Home grounds and demanded to meet with then-President Donald Trump.