WOODSTOCK – Although he maintains it was an accident as a result of his dog jumping on the bed, a Crystal Lake man was sentenced Thursday to four years in prison for shooting his girlfriend in the face.
Dale Barkstrom, 31, pleaded guilty in October to aggravated discharge of a firearm, a Class 1 felony. He had faced as much as 15 years in prison but was eligible for probation.
The original charges against him included attempted murder, but that charge was dropped as part of the plea deal.
The shooting occurred about 11:30 a.m. on Nov. 23, 2008 in the couple's apartment on Terra Cotta Road in Crystal Lake. The bullet hit the victim, Fatime Jashari, near her jawline and exited near an ear.
Barkstrom had told police that the 9mm Glock had normally been kept under the mattress. But when one of the dogs – their bulldog or rottweiler – jumped on the bed, the gun fell to the floor in an approximately six-inch gap between the bed and the wall.
Barkstrom's attorney, Al Stavros, said his client leaned over Jashari to retrieve the gun, grabbing it upside down with his left hand when it went off. A gunshot residue test on the left hand confirmed that Barkstrom had discharged a firearm.
But the prosecution painted a bigger picture, discussing an incident that happened the night before.
Detective Bret Nystrom of the Crystal Lake Police Department interviewed Barkstrom, who said that he and Jashari had gone out to a restaurant. While there, someone made a comment asking if Jashari was the girlfriend Barkstrom had taken to Las Vegas.
It was a reference to a prostitute, Nystrom said, and it led to an argument.
When Jashari took the stand, she referred to the incident as "my accident." She said she has some trouble with her jaw but no other long-term effects.
Jashari said she and Barkstrom, who dated for about 10 years, are no longer together and hadn't spoken since the shooting because she believed a court order prevented them from talking to each other.
Assistant State's Attorney Patrick Kenneally asked for a nine-year prison sentence for Barkstrom, saying that by virtue of the plea it was hard to argue that the shooting was an accident.
Barkstrom was depressed over the possible end of his relationship, Kenneally said.
"This is a textbook example of something that leads up to a homicide, which thank God we avoided in this case," he said. "When you shoot someone with a 9mm semiautomatic handgun in the head, that makes you a dangerous person."
Stavros reiterated that it was an accident, comparing it to when then-Vice President Dick Cheney shot a fellow hunter.
"If [Barkstrom] wanted her to die, why did he call 911?" Stavros said. "Why was there only one bullet?"
Barkstrom briefly spoke to the judge, saying that while it was an accident, it was his fault and he accepted responsibility.
Judge Sharon Prather noted Barkstrom's lack of a criminal record aside from traffic offenses, but said that the seriousness of the crime required a prison sentence. She ordered Barkstrom taken into custody immediately.