Gun suspect gets 8 years in prison for having modified weapon at an Oglesby motel

A Lansing man was sentenced to eight years in prison for possessing a pistol, seized at an Oglesby motel, that had been modified into an automatic weapon.

Terrell J. Davis Jr., 26, also listed as a resident of Chicago, appeared Friday in La Salle County Circuit Court and pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful use of a weapon, a Class X felony carrying six to 30 years in prison.

In exchange for his plea, prosecutors agreed to dismiss two companion charges. He is eligible for day-for-day good time and, with 199 days served, could be released in late 2027 or early 2028.

Davis declined an opportunity to address Chief Judge H. Chris Ryan Jr. before sentencing.

Davis was charged March 26 after a woman said Davis threatened her at gunpoint. The gun, which was never fired, was recovered in an Oglesby motel restroom, where Davis was found, by surveillance footage, to have entered and exited.

Authorities initially focused on the 30-round magazine attached to the .40-caliber Glock pistol. Prosecutors later revealed in open court that the gun was examined by a police officer and found to have been modified with a switch that rendered it into “a fully automatic weapon.”

Prosecutors previously said Davis was wanted on a warrant from Iowa, where he also had been placed under a no-contact order that precluded him from carrying a firearm. Davis had neither a concealed carry permit nor a firearm owner’s identification card, they said.