Judges denied pre-trial release to two teens arrested after officers were led on multiple police pursuits in Lake County at speeds of 140 mph following the shooting of two women in Beach Park.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded around 2 a.m. Sunday to the area of Green Bay Road and Bonnie Brook Lane in Beach Park following a report of a vehicle crash and a shooting.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said deputies arrived and located a vehicle in a ditch with extensive damage.
Two adult female passengers in the vehicle had sustained gunshot wounds.
One of them, a 24-year-old, was shot in the eye and the other, a 30-year-old, was shot in the leg.
A responding deputy applied a tourniquet to the woman’s leg, helping save her life, Covelli said.
Both women were transported to area hospitals and are expected to survive.
The driver of the car, a 42-year-old man, suffered a minor shrapnel injury.
The woman shot in the leg has since been released from the hospital and the woman shot in the eye remained hospitalized as of Monday but was improving.
A preliminary investigation revealed the victims had left a bar in North Chicago and were driving home on Green Bay Road when a grey Dodge pulled up alongside their vehicle, Covelli said.
Occupants of the Dodge then opened fire on the victims’ vehicle. Deputies later recovered several spent shell casings in the area.
Lake County sheriff dispatchers issued a regional broadcast with information about the suspect vehicle.
A Waukegan police officer approximately 30 minutes later spotted a gray Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat matching the description of the suspect vehicle, Covelli said.
When officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop on Sunset Avenue, the driver fled at a high rate of speed and evaded them.
A Lake County sheriff’s deputy around 2:41 a.m. located the suspect vehicle traveling southbound on Route 41 near Route 173 in Wadsworth.
Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Colleen McConnell said the car had stopped to get gas at a gas station at the intersection.
Covelli said the deputy attempted to stop the vehicle but the driver fled again at a high speed. The Dodge fled at speeds of 100 mph.
The deputy pursued the vehicle, which made a U-turn at Stearns School Road and traveled northbound on Route 41 at a high rate of speed.
The suspect ultimately evaded the deputy due to excessive speed.
Another sheriff’s deputy spotted the vehicle traveling eastbound on Route 173 and initiated a pursuit a short time later, Covelli said.
The driver again evaded the deputy at a high rate of speed. McConnell said the Dodge traveled at 140 mph during the chase.
A Zion police officer deployed a tire deflation device, successfully striking the vehicle as it continued eastbound on Route 173 and Jethro Avenue.
The driver temporarily maintained high speeds and again evaded officers before crashing into a heavily wooded area near Route 173 and Joanna Avenue in Zion, Covelli said.
Sheriff’s deputies, Zion police officers, and Waukegan police officers established a perimeter as the occupants fled from the Dodge.
Police canines and drones were deployed to assist in the search.
Sheriff’s deputies and officers located and apprehended Jonathan Garcia, 18, of Waukegan, and a 16-year-old Waukegan boy.
Garcia had been hiding in bushes in the 1700 block of Jethro Avenue.
A rifle and pistol were recovered from the Dodge and an additional pistol was found in a backyard near where one of the offenders was captured, Covelli said.
Detectives believe there was a third person, who was driving the Dodge, who avoided apprehension.
They are working to verify the information and identify and apprehend the suspect.
The Dodge was reported to be stolen from Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin.
Covelli said in an update Monday that Garcia was charged with four counts of aggravated unlawful possession of a firearm.
The 16-year-old boy, whose identity is being withheld, was also charged with four counts of aggravated unlawful possession of a firearm.
The juvenile was transported to the Hulse Juvenile Detention Center and a judge ordered him held in secure detention following a court hearing.
McConnell said Garcia is not allowed to possess firearms as he is under the age of 21 and does not have a valid Firearm Owner’s Identification or a concealed carry license.
Garcia appeared for a detention hearing on Tuesday afternoon after prosecutors filed a petition to detain him pending trial.
McConnell said Garcia has a prior juvenile adjudication for a Class X felony of aggravated discharge of a firearm at a firefighter or police officer. He also has another juvenile case for an unlawful possession of a firearm charge.
A public defender for Garcia said his client was recently released from prison and is working to improve his life.
Lake County Judge Michael Nerheim granted the petition during the hearing after agreeing with prosecutors that Garcia poses a real and present threat to the community.
“The defendant clearly has a history indicative of violence as well as a history of using firearms,” the judge said.
The two suspects arrested have not been charged in connection with the shooting but additional charges are possible and the investigation remains ongoing, Covelli said.
Garcia is scheduled to appear in court again on January 28 for a preliminary hearing.