Tinley Park man gets 12-year split in Munster gas station shooting
Marque Jackson, 49, pleaded guilty in January to aggravated battery. He faced 9-16 years in prison.
Instead, Judge Natalie Bokota sentenced him to six years in prison, three years in Lake County Community Corrections and three years on probation. Jackson has the option to petition to modify his prison sentence, potentially allowing him to get released far earlier.
He indicated he would not appeal.
The victim, Pares Ratliff, who was on the stand June 12, said in court documents that he tracked his girlfriend from Illinois on Sept. 2, 2023, to Mark O's bar in Munster. She was there with Jackson and a female friend.
Ratliff confronted Jackson at a gas station across the street. He attacked Jackson, who eventually chased and fired up to eight shots, hitting Ratliff in the face.
Bokota said Tuesday it went too far.
In arguments, Deputy Prosecutor Lindsey Lanham asked for 16 years, arguing Jackson had a 'significant' criminal history that included a 'history of violence,' like assault and theft.
She said Jackson continued to pursue Ratliff, who was retreating from the confrontation. Lanham said Jackson got an 'extreme benefit' from the plea and argued she could have proved the original attempted murder charge.
The first sentencing hearing on June 12 was rescheduled when defense lawyer Lakeisha Murdaugh said she wanted to introduce part of Ratliff's hour-long YouTube video to Bokota, where he recounted the shooting.
Lanham objected then, saying it was a 'comedy' video and may contain information that would embarrass him if played in open court. Bokota watched the video before Tuesday's hearing.
Murdaugh said Tuesday she understood Ratliff was a 'comedian,' but sometimes 'comedy is reality.'
She argued Ratliff 'provoked' Jackson, although it didn't excuse her client's actions.
He drove '50 miles' from Illinois and was tracking the woman for 'a lot of that evening.' He 'went to confront her' and 'waited in the bushes' for Jackson.
He confronted and assaulted Jackson, then tried to de-escalate the situation.
His criminal history – from 1992-2004 – was decades ago, she said. Today, he has a 15-year-old son. He was a Pace bus driver and had helped raise his younger siblings and a cousin's children after they and his parents died.
'He is sorry,' she said. 'He is a person who has experienced violence.'
Lanham retorted that the gas station video of the shooting was 'clear.'
Jackson said he was 'younger' and 'foolish' when he was in trouble with the law. Since then, he has changed. He's looked over his son to make sure he didn't live the same life. He noted he was already in the juvenile justice system when he was his son's age.
'My work there is not done as a parent,' he said. 'I never wanted for this to happen.'
On June 12, Ratliff testified he was traumatized by the encounter. The bullet pierced his cheek and exited near the corner of his eye. He was still spooked by loud noises, like fireworks. His nose still bled every time he sneezed.
'I don't know how I survived that to be honest with you,' he said. 'I think about it every day.'
Tameka Washington, who was not at the bar, said she was Jackson's long-time girlfriend and the mother of his teenage son.
'We depend greatly on Marque for everything,' she said.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Ratliff told police he went to the gas station to confront Jackson, a man he didn't know, after he saw him on video chat spending a lot of time with his girlfriend at a bar across the street.
At the gas station, Jackson appeared to be 'touching' and 'talking' with the woman.
A witness later told police they saw Ratliff 'come out of the bushes' to fight Jackson.
Ratliff chased Jackson around the gas station until Jackson got a gun out of his 2013 Ford sedan and pointed it toward him. Ratliff lost interest in the fight and backed away across the street.
Jackson pulled up across the street and opened fire. A bullet struck him in the face.
Gas station surveillance captured the fight. License plate readers tracked Jackson's car and his credit card was used at the nearby bar just before the shooting.
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