A man has been sentenced to 28 years in prison after being convicted in the fatal shooting of a grandmother, who tried breaking up an altercation at a party in Waukegan.
Damar D. McDonald, 35, of Waukegan, was charged in August 2020 with five counts of first-degree murder in connection with the death of Annie Faye Nunnally, 63, of North Chicago.
McDonald surrendered to the Waukegan Police Department on a warrant in September 2020, according to then-Waukegan Police Commander Joe Florip.
The murder occurred around 8 p.m. on August 22, 2020, in the 600 block of McAlister Avenue in Waukegan.
Officers and paramedics responded to 911 calls of a person shot. Officers found Nunnally lying in the street with a gunshot wound.
Investigators believe the woman was attending a party at a residence when a verbal altercation broke out between two men, Florip said at the time.
Nunnally attempted to mediate the fight and at least one round was fired, striking the woman. Florip said it was believed McDonald fired the shot.
She then ran into the street where she was found by officers. Paramedics transported Nunnally to an area hospital where she was pronounced dead.
Nunnally left behind her husband, six children, 20 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, according to her obituary.
“Annie was a very special person and loved everyone she met and was loved by everyone who knew her. She had a flare for doing things in a very elegant way,” her obituary read.
McDonald was ordered held in the Lake County Jail on a $3 million bond. In addition to the murder charges, he was also charged with drug offenses, court records show.
A Lake County judge found McDonald guilty of armed violence and not guilty of first-degree murder during a trial in May.
He was sentenced to 28 years in prison during a sentencing hearing earlier this month.
McDonald was additionally sentenced to 12 years in prison after also being convicted of manufacturing or delivery of 15-100 grams of cocaine.
Both sentences are concurrent. State records show McDonald is projected to be paroled from prison in 2050.
Court records show McDonald is appealing both of his convictions.