Oglesby man charged with modified pistol to stay jailed

A Lansing man faces up to 30 years if convicted of possessing a Glock pistol that had been modified to shoot machine gun fire – and he’ll await trial in La Salle County Jail.

Terrell J. Davis Jr., 25, also listed as a resident of Chicago, appeared Thursday in La Salle County Circuit Court and was presented with three charges led by aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, a Class X felony carrying six to 30 years in prison.

Davis was charged Tuesday night in Oglesby after a woman alleged Davis threatened her at gunpoint. The gun, which was never fired, was recovered in an Oglesby motel restroom where Davis was seen, by surveillance footage, entering and exiting, according to police.

Authorities initially focused on the 30-round magazine attached to the .40-caliber Glock pistol, which led to the Wednesday filing of two charges, aggravated unlawful restraint and unlawful use of a weapon.

Thursday, however, prosecutor Greg Sticka revealed in open court the gun was examined by a police officer and found to have been modified with a switch. The officer test-fired the weapon and found the modification “made this a fully-automatic weapon.”

That led to the filing of the Class X charge and prompted the La Salle County State’s Attorney’s Office to file a petition to detain him. Illinois last year abolished cash bonds and jailing a suspect now requires prosecutors to prove a suspect poses a threat.

Public Defender Ryan Hamer said Davis has a limited criminal history with no felony convictions. Hamer disputed the perceived risk to the public since the gun wasn’t fired.

But Sticka said Davis was wanted on a warrant from Iowa, where he also been placed under a no-contact order that precluded him from carrying a firearm. Davis had neither a concealed carry permit nor a firearm owner’s ID card, Sticka said.

Chief Judge H. Chris Ryan Jr. ruled the facts and circumstances made Davis a risk to the public and ordered him held pending trial.

“He’s in the car, with a weapon, threatening to ‘pop’ her and he has a fully automatic weapon,” the judge said.

Davis will next appear April 11 for arraignment.