A Far South Side man has been accused of being one of three gunmen who fatally shot two Innovation High School students in the Loop early last year.
Fugitive trackers arrested James Allison, 20, on Monday in Crown Point, Ind., and he was later charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder related to the Jan. 26, 2024, fatal shooting, according to Chicago police.
The shooting, in broad daylight, killed childhood friends Monterio Williams, 17, and Robert Boston, 16. It occurred after the teens left their downtown high school in the first block of North State Street at dismissal time just after 12:30 p.m. that day.
The gunmen fired for about 15 seconds, prosecutors said, as pedestrians ran for cover and the boys fell to the ground. Williams sustained six gunshot wounds and Boston had three. Both were pronounced dead at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.
During the hearing, prosecutors noted a “history of disputes” between the gunmen and the victims, adding that at least one of the gunmen attended Innovations with the victims. An unnamed third person believed to be one of the gunmen died last June, prosecutors said.
Allison also faces felony charges of aggravated discharge of a firearm and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. A 25-year-old woman suffered a bruise when one of the bullets struck her jacket sleeve.
When ordering Coleman’s detention, Judge William Fahy said he posed a “real and present threat” to the community, especially because the shooting was in the middle of the day in a highly congested part of the city.
Allison is expected to appear before a judge Wednesday, police said.
