Two men charged in connection with Belleville shooting, police say
Two men have been charged with felony weapons offenses in connection with a shooting that left two people injured on East D Street, Belleville police said Tuesday.
The victims suffered non-life threatening gunshot wounds and were taken to an area hospital after the shooting was reported at 7:49 p.m. Friday in the 100 block of East D Street, according to a news release from the Belleville Police Department.
“During the investigation it was determined that a disturbance broke out between two different groups before shots were exchanged,” the news release states. “One suspect was then taken into custody on scene and a second suspect was taken into custody during a traffic stop a short distance away from the scene.”
Police said charges were filed against two men:
▪ Michael A. Edwards, 56, of Cahokia Heights was charged with felon in possession of a firearm/forcible felony, unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon.
▪ James M. Walker, 64, of Belleville was charged with aggravated discharge of a firearm and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon.
Both men were being held in the St. Clair County Jail Tuesday.
In a detention hearing Tuesday afternoon, St. Clair County Associate Judge Sara L. Rice ordered that Edwards remain in the county jail.
St. Clair County State’s Attorney Jim Gomric argued that Edwards should be detained and told Rice that Edwards had “no business” possessing a firearm since he is a convicted felon. Court records show Edwards was convicted of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon/no firearm in 2002 in Madison County.
The shooting occurred between two groups of people at the apartments above the Home Brite Ace Hardware store at the corner of East D Street and North Illinois Street.
St. Clair County Assistant Public Defender Satchel Conroy asked that Edwards be released on electronic monitoring. He told Rice that Edwards was “defending himself” and “likely” would not be alive to attend the hearing if he had not done so.
“He’s not a troublemaker,” Conroy said.
Before announcing her order against Edwards, Rice noted that “gun violence is an ongoing threat to our community.”
A detention hearing for Walker is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Illinois judges have been conducting detention hearings since September 2023 for persons charged with serious offenses. If a judge considers a person dangerous to the community, the person can be remanded to the county jail until their trial, according to the revamped criminal justice system created by the Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today, or SAFE-T, Act.
This story was originally published November 12, 2024 at 11:03 AM.