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

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 Home in Tennessee

ByThe Related Press

19 May 2022, 17:42

• 3 min read

PEKIN, Ailing. -- 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 House in Tennessee.

A judge convicted Jeffrey Reinking final week of unlawful delivery of a firearm to a person who had been treated for mental illness inside the past five years, the ( Peoria) Journal Star reported. He stays free on bond pending his sentencing, which is set 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 therapy in 2016.

In Might 2016, police and fire personnel responded to a pharmacy parking lot in Morton where Travis Reinking advised 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 analysis after that incident and had agreed to go to the hospital.

But Jeffrey Reinking’s legal professional, Kevin Sullivan, argued at trial that his consumer didn’t know his son had been handled for psychological health points at the hospital. Sullivan said he knew his son was brought to the hospital but didn’t know why, and was not responsible of the charge.

As a result of the younger Reinking had his firearm proprietor’s identification card revoked by Illinois State Police, he couldn't legally have weapons 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 capturing at a Waffle Home in Nashville, prosecutors stated.

The assault-style rifle he used in that assault, 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 possibility of parole after being convicted of 4 counts of first-degree homicide 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 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 space on the White House grounds and demanded to fulfill with then-President Donald Trump.