A 58-year-old man was charged Wednesday for allegedly pointing a rifle and threatening to kill a sheriff’s deputy moments before deputies shot him near Harvard earlier this month.
Randall B. Little, 58, of the 19900 block of Streit Road in Harvard, was charged with armed violence, aggravated intimidation of a peace officer, two counts of felon in possession of a firearm, intimidation, threatening a public official, unlawful use of a weapon, two counts of aggravated assault and unauthorized possession of cannabis sativa plants.
Little was allegedly armed with a .300 caliber blackout short barrel rifle on April 1, according to a criminal complaint filed in McHenry County Circuit Court on Wednesday.
Little pointed the rifle at a McHenry County sheriff’s deputy and threatened to kill her if she did not leave his property, the complaint said.
The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office had responded to Little’s residence in the 19900 block of Streit Road in unincorporated Harvard around 8 p.m. that evening after receiving a call to check on the wellbeing of a subject.
The sheriff’s office said the “armed confrontation” resulted in deputies discharging their firearms, striking the man.
No deputies were injured during the incident.
Lifesaving measures were given to the man and he was transported by the Harvard Fire Protection District to Mercyhealth Hospital in Harvard, the sheriff’s office said.
He was then flown to Javon Bea Hospital in Rockford where he was in critical condition.
The McHenry County Major Investigation Assistance Team (MIAT) was requested to conduct an investigation into the incident.
The most serious charge against Little, armed violence, is a Class X felony. Investigators also found Little in possession of more than 20 cannabis sativa plants, court documents show.
A warrant was issued Wednesday after prosecutors approved the 10 felony charges against the man.
Little is not in custody in McHenry County yet and the warrant remains active, court records show.