Woman charged as accessory in Streator killing to stay in jail

A man accused of pulling the trigger in a May 6 fatal shooting will stay in the La Salle County Jail while awaiting trial for murder.

The woman who prosecutors said was with him during the crime will stay locked up, too.

Rachael N. Carter, 37, of Streator, appeared Thursday in La Salle County Circuit Court and asked to be let out of jail while awaiting trial on felony charges stemming from the shooting that killed Shaquita Kelly and injured two others.

Citing provisions of the newly implemented SAFE-T Act, Carter and her lawyer, Brad Popurella, argued Thursday that Carter wasn’t the one who pulled the trigger and therefore poses no threat to the public.

Carter is not charged with murder. She is, however, charged with two counts of unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon and one count of aiding and abetting a fugitive. She could face up to seven years in prison.

But prosecutor Jeremiah Adams said Carter was an accessory in a fatal shooting, after which she is alleged to have fled to Memphis, Tennessee, where she was apprehended.

Judge Cynthia M. Raccuglia rejected Carter’s bid and ordered her detained. Two days earlier, murder suspect Malcolm Whitfield also struck out in his bid for pre-trial release under the SAFE-T Act.

Whitfield is set for trial Dec. 4. Carter will next appear Nov. 3 for a motions hearing.