Prosecutors’ Failed Attempts to Detain Drivers Accused of Firing Guns During Traffic Altercations
In recent weeks, prosecutors in Chicago have sought to detain drivers accused of firing guns during traffic altercations, only to have their requests denied by judges who sent the accused drivers home on ankle monitors.
One such case involved a 36-year-old man who reported that another driver had opened fire on his car in the 9400 block of South Ashland.
According to prosecutors, the victim had cut in front of 23-year-old Kevin Reynoso due to an upcoming lane closure. Reynoso then allegedly pulled alongside the victim and fired five shots at his car. Investigators found five bullet marks on the victim’s Ford Fusion.
The victim had recorded part of the incident on his phone, capturing the gunman’s license plate. Police traced the plate to Reynoso’s residence in Harvey, where they found him driving the car and discovered a gun in his possession.
Reynoso was charged with aggravated discharge of a firearm toward an occupied vehicle. Despite prosecutors’ request to keep him in jail, Judge Ankur Srivastava ordered him to be placed on the sheriff’s electronic monitoring program.
Another incident occurred a week later in the 1500 block of South Racine, where two drivers crashed. One of the drivers, 50-year-old Maurice Jones, allegedly punched the other driver, kicked him, and then fired a gun into the ground near the victims.
Although Jones admitted to firing the gun, claiming the victims did not speak English and had no insurance, he does not possess a concealed carry license despite being licensed to own firearms.
Despite the seriousness of the charges, Judge Antara Rivera also rejected the detention petition for Jones and ordered him to wear a GPS ankle monitor.
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