Man charged with murder in road rage shooting on Interstate 80 near New Lenox, Illinois
JOLIET, Ill. (CBS) -- A man has been charged with murder in a deadly road rage shooting on Interstate 80 near southwest suburban New Lenox earlier this week.
Phillip E. Rogers, 45, is charged with first-degree murder and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon in the shooting death of 30-year-old Lenier Clayton, according to Illinois State Police.
Prosecutors said Rogers was banned from owning a gun or driving a car, but had them both when he allegedly shot Clayton.
A Will County judge ordered Rogers to stay in custody while he awaits trial, saying he poses too big of a threat to public safety, noting the shooting happened during rush hour on a busy expressway.
Clayton was driving home from work around 5:30 p.m. Monday, when he was shot in a road rage attack in the westbound lanes of Interstate 80 headed towards the exit to Interstate 355 near New Lenox, police said.
Investigators said Clayton and another driver got into an argument on the interstate. When the two got out to look at the damage, the driver pulled out a gun and fired.
Clayton was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:15 p.m., according to the Will County Coroner's Office.
Prosecutors didn't say how the incident started, they said a witness called 911 to report what looked like a road rage incident involving two cars – a Jeep that steered into a Honda, pushing it into the center median wall.
Both drivers got out, and that witness said he heard several gunshots as he continued on.
Prosecutors said Rogers owned that Jeep, even though he was prohibited from driving because of a prior felony fleeing and eluding charge.
Data from Rogers' Jeep showed he turned left into Clayton's car. Police said they tracked Rogers down about a mile from the scene, and recovered a 9 mm handgun near the scene.
Clayton's family went to Will County Court Wednesday to face the accused gunman. Clayton's sister, Mia, said information about the other evidence left her sick to her stomach.
"We knew he had been shot multiple times. We didn't know how many times. So finding out that he shot at him 11 times, that nine of him hit him, and that most of them were in his back, it's sickening. There was no reason for it," she said.
Rogers claimed Clayton threatened to shoot him, but prosecutors said Clayton didn't have a gun.
Rogers is due back in court on Dec. 12.
Clayton's mother said Thanksgiving was his favorite holiday, yet this week, his family will have a huge void during the holiday—as they will for years to come.
Video supplied by the Clayton family shows him dancing with a big smile—and that is how his mother, Lenora, wants to remember her only son.
"He was the life of the party," she said. "He was a jokester—very good young man."
Clayton's mother said she refuses to harbor hate in her heart against the man accused of killing her son, but she will be in court for every hearing to make sure justice is served.
