COOK COUNTY CRIMINAL COURTHOUSE — The former Lawry's employee who tied up several workers and shot a manager Sunday was recently fired after getting into a fight with a colleague, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Marcus Norwood, 39, is accused of binding three Lawry's The Prime Rib employees with duct tape and zip ties before forcing an assistant manager onto his knees and shooting that man in his arm about 10:30 p.m. Sunday.
Prosecutors in court Wednesday said the assistant manager, 28, had recently broken up a fight between Norwood and a co-worker and then escorted Norwood out of the high-end restaurant at 100 E. Ontario St.
Norwood was subsequently fired, prosecutors said.
He appeared in bond court Wednesday at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse, 2650 S. California Ave., wearing a t-shirt that depicts a cartoon teddy bear dabbing. The bear's t-shirt said "LIT."
Norwood was denied bail on charges of attempted first-degree murder, being an armed habitual criminal, armed robbery and aggravated unlawful restraint. He has previous convictions for armed robbery, aggravated battery causing great bodily harm, possession of a controlled substance, aggravated discharge of a firearm and retail theft.
According to prosecutors, the attack started about 10:30 p.m. Sunday when Norwood entered Lawry's The Prime Rib through an employee entrance. The last customers had left by 10:15 p.m.
Inside an employee locker room, Norwood forced an employee about to leave for the evening to the ground at gunpoint, Assistant State's Attorney Lorraine Scaduto said in court.
Norwood is roughly 6-foot-5 and wore a face mask with dark clothing, prosecutors said. He is accused of binding the employee's wrists and ankles with zip ties before covering the employee's eyes with duct tape.
When a second employee entered the locker room, Scaduto said, Norwood hit that employee on his head with a hard object before binding him with duct tape and zip ties. That employee later required surgery for bleeding in his brain; Scaduto said he now has a "favorable" prognosis.
Norwood soon hit a third employee on the head with a hammer, prosecutors said, and bound the employee with zip ties. Norwood did not cover this employee's eyes, according to Scaduto.
At that point, Norwood stole wallets and cash from the victims while threatening them with his gun, prosecutors said.
That's when the assistant manager entered the locker room, and Norwood forced the man to his knees, Scaduto said. The manager looked up and said, "Marcus, what are you doing?"
Norwood replied, "Get on your knees, motherf-----," before shooting the man in his arm, according to prosecutors. Norwood then tried to fire the gun again, Scaduto said, but it appeared to be jammed.
The manager jumped up and ran away. Norwood tried to pursue him, prosecutors said, but eventually left Lawry's through an employee's entrance as the manager rushed out a side door. The manager later required surgery on his arm.
During the locker-room attack, Scaduto said, an employee in a nearby single-stall restroom heard a gunshot and began frantically texting friends and family for help. That employee stayed in the restroom until police arrived.
Officers arrested Norwood a short while later at a CTA Red Line station at Chicago Avenue and State Street, police said. In a garbage can a block away, they recovered Norwood's bag, a gun, a knife, a hammer, zip ties, duct tape and a plastic glove, officials said.
Norwood had $812 on him, prosecutors said.
While the locker-room attack was not captured on camera, multiple surveillance cameras inside Lawry's placed him at the restaurant immediately before the attack, Scaduto said.
Assistant Public Defender Patrick Keegan said Norwood, of the 400 block of East 72nd Street, lives with his girlfriend and two children. Norwood is a high school graduate who does demolition work "on and off," the attorney said.
Cook County Judge Mary Marubio denied Norwood bail.