Man gets 32 years in 2021 fatal Gurnee shooting

WAUKEGAN – A Lake County judge on Oct. 18 sentenced a man to 32 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections for the 2021 Gurnee fatal shooting of a man.

Joey Gonzalez, 27, was convicted on June 14, of second-degree murder, a Class 1 felony; aggravated battery with a firearm, a Class X felony; three counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm, a Class 1 felony; and one count of unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, a Class 2 felony, according to news release from the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office.

After the sentencing, Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said, “Chief of the Criminal Division Jeff Facklam and Principal Assistant State’s Attorney Ron Park won a tough case in which the offender claimed self-defense. The jury rejected this argument due to our office’s work, and this offender will be away from the community for decades. Our thoughts are with the family of the victim, and we will support them for as long as they need.”

In November 2021, Gurnee Police Department officers and the Lake County Major Crimes Task Force responded to a report of shots fired at the Gurnee Mills parking lot. When officers arrived, they located Jonathan Denicolas, 26, being aided by a good Samaritan. Denicolas was transported to a hospital, where he succumbed his injuries.

At the sentencing hearing, Lombardo considered evidence in aggravation through two state witnesses who testified to two separate gun incidents the defendant was involved in after shooting, and a victim-impact statement written by the mother of the victim.

In the statement that was read in open court, his mother described Jonathan Denicolas as being a playful, loving young man and said that Gonzalez took a big piece of her and her family’s lives when Gonzalez ended Jonathan’s life.

Chief Deputy Facklam and ASA Ron Park argued to Judge Lombardo that Gonzalez’s actions on Nov. 21, 2021, and his lengthy criminal history have demonstrated how much of a danger he is to the community. Prosecutors pointed out that Gonzalez had no regard for human life when he opened fire in the parking lot on what was probably the busiest shopping weekend of the year, according to the release.

Prosecutors further noted that Gonzalez should have especially known the dangers of a firearm since in March 2017, he was charged with involuntary manslaughter, two counts of aggravated unlawful use of weapon, and two counts of unlawful possession of a weapon, after he accidently shot and killed his friend. Gonzalez pled guilty in December 2017 to one count of involuntary manslaughter and one count of residential burglary (the residential burglary was a separate, unrelated incident) and was sentenced to four and a half years in prison to be served at 50%. State’s Attorney Rinehart, Chief Deputy Facklam, and ASA Ron Park all started working in the office after 2020.

Sentencing laws allowed Judge Lombardo to sentence Gonzalez to a range of 10 to 45 years in prison to be served at 85%.

Prior to trial, Gonzalez was being held in in the Lake County Jail on a $10 million bond. (This cash bond was set by a judge in 2022, before the effective date of bail reform which now prevents individuals charged with second-degree murder and firearm offenses from posting bond if a judge so decides at the beginning of the case.)

After the guilty verdict, Judge Lombardo revoked Gonzalez’s ability to post bond. Gonzalez received 792 days credit of time served.