Just one year ago police in the Chicago suburb of Round Lake Beach charged Shorbonia Poole, Jr. with armed robbery with a firearm, theft by threatening and multiple counts of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. So why was he out on the streets twelve months later? 

Thanks to a sweetheart deal offered by prosecutors, Poole ended up pleading guilty to a single felony count of aggravated robbery back in February and was sentenced to "periodic imprisonment", along with 300 hours of public service, and, most importantly, 48 months of probation. 

According to the Lake County Sheriff's Office, "periodic imprisonment" is an alternative sentencing program designed for non-violent offenders who are "demonstrating an ability to function within society while remaining under supervision of corrections staff." Last time I checked, armed robbery was a violent offense, so why Lake County prosecutors offered Poole the opportunity to avoid prison is a question that deserves an answer... especially since police in Round Lake Beach have now connected Poole to the recent death of a 15-year-old girl.

Lake County Major Crime Task Force Spokesman Christopher Covelli announced in an update Saturday morning that Round Lake Beach police detectives and Lake County Major Crime Task Force investigators reviewed video surveillance from several cameras in the area of the Wednesday shooting that killed Valeria Rodriguez, 15, of Round Lake Beach.

Investigators conducted a search warrant in the early morning hours on Friday at a home in the 1400 block of Kildeer Drive in Round Lake Beach.

During their search, they located a semi-automatic pistol and other evidence, Covelli said. 

A preliminary analysis of the pistol shows it was consistent with discharging the shell casing located outside of Rodriguez’s home, Covelli said.

Investigators determined that Shorbonia Poole Jr., 19, who lives at the home where the search warrant was conducted, possessed the firearm that was used in the homicide, Covelli said.

The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office approved the charge of unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon, a Class 2 felony, against Poole Jr.

Covelli said additional charges are expected pending additional forensic information.

While Poole is currently only facing charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm, the Lake and McHenry County Scanner reports that police also consider the 19-year-old a suspect in Rodriguez's murder. 

If Poole had been convicted at trial of all the charges he was originally facing in the 2023 armed robbery, he could have been sentenced to spend the next 45 years in prison. Instead, he walked away with essentially a slap on the wrist and a part-time jail sentence. Prosecutors haven't said why they offered Poole such an amazing deal, but the public deserves an explanation, especially with authorities alleging that Poole was at least in possession of the gun that was used in last week's fatal shooting. 

None of the extensive gun control laws that are already in place in Illinois prevented Poole from allegedly getting ahold of a gun even after his felony conviction. If he'd been incarcerated for last year's armed robbery, however, he not only would have been unable to illegally acquire a firearm, he wouldn't have been spotted near the scene of the Rodriguez home around the time of the shooting. 

In response to Rodriguez's death, Illinois Democrat congressman Brad Schneider proclaimed, "We have got to get this senseless gun violence out of our communities." 

A good first step would be acknowledging that the state's expansive gun control laws didn't stop this shooting, as well as the fact that the gun didn't pull the trigger of its own accord. There was a person behind the gun who was responsible for Rodriguez's senseless and tragic death. The question is whether the suspect was essentially aided and abetted by a criminal justice system that, all too often, treats violent offenders with kid gloves and a light touch.