Streator fugitive gets 4 years in prison for role in fatal shooting

A Streator woman was sentenced Thursday to four years in prison for her role in a fatal Streator shooting.

Rachael N. Carter, 37, had entered a blind plea Dec. 7 in La Salle County Circuit Court to one count of unlawful possession of a weapon (actually ammunition) and one count of aiding and abetting a fugitive. The controlling charge is possession of ammunition, a Class 2 felony carrying three to 14 years in prison with no possibility of probation.

“This is something that will be a lifelong sentence.”

—  Rachael Carter, sentenced to 4 years

She was charged after a manhunt launched May 6 after three people were shot in Streator. One of the victims, 35-year-old Shaquita Kelly, soon died. Carter later admitting driving the prime suspect, Malcolm Whitfield, to Memphis, Tennessee. Bullets were recovered during a search of her residence.

At Thursday’s sentencing hearing, the first word out of Carter’s mouth was “sorry,” directed primarily at the victims in the case.

“This is something that will be a lifelong sentence,” Carter tearfully told Judge Cynthia M. Raccuglia.

Defense attorney Brad Popurella asked Raccuglia for the minimum three years on ammunition charge, which he proposed run concurrently with three years for the lesser charge of aiding and abetting a fugitive.

Popurella said Carter’s criminal history was dotted with traffic convictions and was not, on balance, quite as lengthy or egregious as prosecutors portrayed. Carter, he said, acted under at least some duress thanks to addiction – “She has a drug problem which she is trying to address” – and domestic violence at the hands of a controlling partner.

“You see a woman who’s taking accountability for her actions,” Popurella said. “She came before the court and plead guilty and is taking responsibility for her actions.”

Assistant La Salle County State’s Attorney Jeremiah Adams asked for six years on both counts. He acknowledged Carter was never alleged to have fired the fatal and injurious shots. Nevertheless, she was a key actor in a fatal incident she “escalated” and then worsened the situation by helping a murder suspect flee.

“I can think of no more significant or worse way to violate the statute than to aid a murderer in fleeing the state of Illinois,” Adams said.

The judge opted for a near-minimum sentence. Raccuglia acknowledged some mitigating factors but “the aiding and abetting of a murderer under these circumstances is serious.”

(A man alleged of murder, that is. Whitfield is awaiting trial and will next appear April 19 for a motions hearing.)

Carter might not be in prison long. She has more than 400 days credit for time served and/or participating in drug treatment programs while in custody. Coupled with a shot at day-for-day good time, she could be released in late 2025.