COOK COUNTY CRIMINAL COURTHOUSE — A South Austin man was denied bail Thursday on charges he killed one man and wounded three others during a 2014 shooting.
According to prosecutors, the victims were near a front stoop in the 4900 block of West West End Street about 5 p.m. June 4, 2014, when three gunman approached from an alley and opened fire.
Ronald Holliman, 18, was shot in his knee, buttocks and thigh, prosecutors said, and died at Mt. Sinai Hospital.
Three other men were shot and survived: a 21-year-old who was shot in his abdomen, arm, leg, back and flank; a 26-year-old who was shot in his chest, back, abdomen and flank; and a 17-year-old who suffered a graze wound to his hip but did not seek medical treatment.
Two of the victims were able to identify Dennis Weathers, now 25, as one of the shooters, Assistant State's Attorney Sheila York said during a bond hearing Thursday.
Police arrested Weathers and codefendant Reginald Jackson on June 8, 2014, prosecutors said. Officers found two 9-mm handguns that matched shell casings found on the scene of the South Austin shooting, York said.
Jackson was charged in the case last week and ordered held on $600,000 bail.
Weathers, of the 400 block of North Lavergne Avenue, appeared in bond court Thursday on charges of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder. Cook County Judge Donald Panarese Jr. denied Weathers bail.
It is not clear why prosecutors waited nearly three years to file charges.
Weathers is currently an inmate at Cook County Jail, where is awaiting trial for a 2015 unlawful-use-of-a-weapon case. In that matter, York said, Weathers is accused of shooting someone multiple times on July 6, 2015.
Police arrested Weathers three blocks away from the shooting, prosecutors said. A .40 caliber handgun found on a nearby rooftop matched shell casings found on the scene; a fingerprint on the gun allegedly matched Weathers.
Weathers admitted to feuding with the victim in that case and to owning the gun, according to prosecutors. Bail was set at $1 million.
Weathers was previously convicted of trying to blackmail a police officer by offering $5,000 to let him go free, York said. He was sentenced to boot camp. Weathers also has prior convictions for soliciting unlawful business, manufacturing and delivering a controlled substance, and driving on a suspended license.
According to his public defender, Weathers has four children and previously worked in construction, specializing in rehab and demolition work.
