Prosecutors say a Waukegan man fired numerous shots into a backyard, in close proximity to his neighbors, and told officers he did so because he ran out of fireworks to shoot off.
The Waukegan Police Department responded around 12:21 a.m. June 27 to the area of South Victory Street and Clarke Avenue for a call of shots fired.
Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Elizabeth Cannon said multiple 911 callers reported hearing three shots and then four more shots.
One shell casing was found on the sidewalk north of a home in the 300 block of South Victory Street and another casing was found in front of a residence in the 900 block of Clarke Avenue by a Jeep Cherokee.
The Jeep was registered to Rufino Morales, 32, of Waukegan.
Officers saw four more shell casings in plain view inside the locked vehicle, Cannon said.
A group of people, who resided downstairs of a residence in the 300 block of South Victory Street, were sitting in an open garage when the shots were fired.
Cannon said the garage is approximately 20-30 feet away and was within potential bullet ricochet range.
Officers went to the upper level of the residence and Morales answered the door.
He spoke with police voluntarily and said that he was shooting fireworks.
Morales then admitted to firing his gun, which he described as a Taurus G2C, into the backyard because he ran out of fireworks, Cannon said.
Officers could not see any evidence of bullet holes in the dirt or ground due to recent rain.
Morales had a valid Firearm Owner’s Identification card but did not have a concealed carry license.
Officers recovered, with the consent of Morales’ family, the Taurus G2C handgun from the living room of the apartment where he sleeps, Cannon said.
A family member of Morales told officers that no one else has a gun at the residence.
Morales was arrested and charged with one count of reckless discharge of a firearm endangering others, a Class 4 felony.
“The Court should note that this offense is a crime of violence and involves the use of a weapon. This Defendant fired a gun multiple times in his backyard when his neighbors were present because he ‘ran out of fireworks,'” Cannon said.
Cannon argued that Morales is a danger to the community as a whole.
“This Defendant should be detained to protect the community, as this Defendant’s poor judgement equates shooting a firearm in the middle of a residential backyard when other people are present as a reasonable behavior because he ran out of fireworks,” she said.
Lake County Judge James Newman denied a petition to detain Morales that was filed by the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office.
The judge said that while Morales poses a danger to the community, he believes there are pre-trial conditions to mitigate the threat.
Morales was placed on pre-trial services monitoring and on a curfew. He was ordered not to possess any weapons.
“Significantly poor judgment that you exhibited on that day. You should be a better example for your kids. I certainly hope that you’re learning a lesson from this,” Newman said to Morales during a detention hearing.
Morales is scheduled to appear in court again on July 22 for a status of preliminary hearing.