Murder Convict Who Spurred 3-Day Manhunt Sentenced To 107 Years
KANKAKEE, Ill. (AP) -- A Kankakee County jail inmate who escaped last month and was captured three days later was sentenced Monday to more than a century in prison for a 2013 murder.
"You are extremely dangerous, Mr. Taylor," Bradshaw-Elliott said during sentencing. "Nothing I do will deter you now to change. I have to keep the community protected."
Taylor, 23, was convicted in February in the shooting death of 21-year-old Nelson Williams Jr. during a botched robbery attempt.
Prior to sentencing, prosecutors also said that Taylor was a suspect in the killing of Orlando Wilson, an ex-convict who had just been released from prison before he was killed in Kankakee in May 2013. Taylor was also suspected in the robbery of a Kankakee credit union in August 2012. He hasn't been charged for either of those crimes.
In his impact statement, Nelson Williams Sr. said he's been having trouble sleeping since his son was murdered.
"It is hard for me to watch my other children playing," he said. "They want to know when `big brother' is coming back."
On April 1, Taylor escaped from the Jerome Combs Detention Center after attacking a guard who was making rounds. Authorities say Taylor put on the guard's uniform to trick officers into buzzing him through security doors. He drove off in the guard's SUV and was captured three days later in Chicago.
LeAndre Harrington, the correctional officer Taylor attacked during his escape, has been unable to recall the incident, according to authorities.
Barbara Bowman, a mitigation expert, was called by defense attorneys to testify. She authored a 15-page report that found Taylor was physically abused by relatives from the time he was 3. She also noted Taylor was prone to explosive outbursts as he grew up. He started smoking marijuana and drinking by the time he was 13. His first arrest was for retail theft.
