‘Dangerous man’ sentenced for shooting gun at Alton school

A man with a lengthy criminal record was sentenced to 22 years in state prison for firing a gun in the direction of an elementary school in the Alton School District in 2014.

Charles D. Thomas, 26, who was convicted in June of aggravated discharge of a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school, a Class X felony, was found guilty after less than one hour of jury deliberation. He was charged with shooting in the direction of Lovejoy Elementary School at 1043 Tremont St., at a time when students were present.

“This dangerous man, who fired off multiple shots within hundreds of feet of the doors of an elementary school, does not belong on the streets of Madison County; he belongs behind bars where he will remain for a long time,” Tom Gibbons, the Madison County state’s attorney, said in a written statement.

“Placing a school on lockdown in a traumatic experience for all involved. I am thankful that no one at Lovejoy Elementary was injured as a result of the unprovoked act of violence,” Gibbons said.

Under state law, Thomas will be required to serve 85 percent of his sentence, or 18 years and eight months. He was sentenced by Associate Judge Neil Schroeder.

According to the press statement, on Feb. 19, 2014, a pedestrian reported that shots were fired near the school. Alton police responded and discovered Thomas and his vehicle in which they found a backpack containing a firearm.

“The investigation determined that Thomas approached the victim in his vehicle and fired shots out of the passenger window in the direction of the Lovejoy Elementary School,” the statement said. It was unclear if Thomas was aiming for the victim.

The prosecution was carried out by Assistant State’s Attorneys Crystal Uhe, chief of the criminal division, and Rachelle Crowe, of the Violent Crimes Unit.

“My prosecutors, along with local law enforcement agencies, will continue to fight to remove these dangerous individuals from our community,” Gibbons said.

This story was originally published August 26, 2016 at 7:58 PM with the headline "‘Dangerous man’ sentenced for shooting gun at Alton school."