CHICAGO — A man has been sentenced to 10 years for fatally shooting another man in Rogers Park three years ago.
Prosecutors had said Desmen Williams intended to shoot someone else when he killed Jemel Murphy, 22, on the afternoon of May 6, 2020. He faced 11 counts of first-degree murder. But in a plea agreement with prosecutors, Williams has now pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of second-degree murder before Judge James Linn. Linn handed Williams a consecutive one-year sentence for a separate felony gun charge.
Prosecutor said Williams got into an argument with a person who was with Murphy outside a restaurant near the Howard CTA station. At one point, the other person punched Williams, who pulled a crowbar out of his Jeep, which was parked nearby, prosecutors said. A witness broke up the confrontation, and Williams drove away in his black Jeep after saying he would be back, according to prosecutors.
About 40 minutes later, Murphy and the person who was in the confrontation with Williams were standing in the 1600 block of West Jonquil Terrace when a black Jeep rolled up and its driver began shooting at them, prosecutors said.
One bullet passed through Murphy’s arm and lodged in his chest. He died of his wounds at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston. The person who argued with Williams allegedly identified him as the shooter.
Cellphone location data, Chicago police surveillance cameras, and a CPD license plate reader put Williams’ phone and Jeep in the area of the shooting, according to prosecutors. Police located and impounded Williams’ Jeep two days after the murder. Investigators executed a search warrant on the vehicle and found a crowbar inside and gunshot residue on the Jeep’s interior, prosecutors said.
Williams had a license to own firearms at the time of the shooting but did not have a concealed carry license.
His sentence will be reduced by 50% for good behavior and another 817 days for credits earned before pleading. He is scheduled to be paroled on August 24, 2026.