Trial postponed in Streator fatal shooting

A Streator man facing up to 145 years on the charge he fired the May 6 shots that killed a Streator woman and injured two others has waived his right to a speedy trial.

Malcolm J. Whitfield, 29, also listed as a resident of DeKalb, appeared Friday in La Salle County Circuit Court for a motions hearing. He was initially set for trial Aug. 28 on three counts of first-degree murder plus six felony firearm charges all stemming from the May 6 shooting that killed 35-year-old Shaquita M. Kelly.

Friday, however, Public Defender Ryan Hamer asked to indefinitely postpone the trial and to have Whitfield return for an Oct. 6 status hearing. Chief Judge H. Chris Ryan Jr. agreed and canceled Whitfield’s remaining August court dates.

The request was not unexpected. Few murder trials proceed on the first setting, as attorneys typically require months of research and interviews to prepare for complex trials.

Complicating matters is the extended sentencing ranges Whitfield would face if convicted of killing Kelly and injuring two others with gunfire.

The sentencing range for first-degree murder is 20 to 60 years, with no possibility of probation, but Whitfield would face a mandatory 25-year enhancement for using a firearm.

His remaining charges include two counts of aggravated battery with a firearm, a Class X felony carrying six to 30 years, for the shots that struck and injured Emmett J. Williams and Brianna D. Anderson. If found guilty, Whitfield would serve the murder and two battery charges back-to-back for an aggregate sentence of 57 to 145 years.

Whitfield remains held in La Salle County Jail on $5 million.