A Riverdale man has been found guilty of committing what Lake County prosecutors called the “cold-blooded and calculated” murder of a man at a Waukegan motel in 2020.
Jurors returned guilty verdicts for first-degree murder against Darius Kirby, who police said killed Jerry Reid of Chicago in August of 2021.
Waukegan police said they were called at 4:30 a.m. on Aug. 26, 2020, to the motel on the corner of North Green Bay Road and Washington Street after receiving reports of gunfire.
They located the victim, who had been shot multiple times. He was brought to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Kirby and another man, Shava Jackson-Spicer of Joliet, were arrested in connection with the slaying months later, in March 2021.
Kirby lay in wait before shooting the victim, prosecutors said.
“Mr. Kirby committed a cold-blooded and calculated murder that he contemplated as he made the long drive from Joliet, Illinois, to Waukegan,” State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said. “Mr. Kirby then laid in wait for his victim. This type of planned murder warrants a very lengthy prison sentence.”
Kirby faces 20 to 60 years in prison when he is sentenced. He is due back in court in May. Jackson-Spicer is scheduled to stand trial in April.
