Trial date set in fatal Easter shooting in Streator

A Streator man accused of killing a teen and injuring two others in the Easter Sunday shooting pleaded innocent Tuesday and was given an October trial date.

Tyler D. Skerett, 31, also listed in Peru, will remain in La Salle County Jail for the time being. During his first appearance Tuesday in La Salle County Circuit Court, Skerett advised Judge Michelle A. Vescogni he would waive his right to a detention hearing, which preserves his right to argue later for pre-trial release.

Skerett entered the court manacled amid tight security. Earlier, he appeared in a separate courtroom on a warrant for a missed court date and then was charged by one of the April 20 survivors. The assailant, who threatened to kill Skerett, was restrained and escorted out of the building. Charges are under review, prosecutors said.

Skerett is charged with multiple felonies, led by first-degree murder (sentencing range: 20-60 years, no probation) if convicted of the April 20 shooting of a 17-year-old, whose name is redacted from the criminal information. He may face additional time if convicted of companion charges of attempted murder for shooting two survivors.

With no detention hearing held as of yet, La Salle County prosecutors have not spelled out their case against Skerett in open court. New filings, however, show how he was developed as a suspect.

According to court records, a “dark colored” Chevrolet Cruze pulled alongside a Hyundai at 5:51 p.m. April 20 at Main and Sterling streets in Streator. Shots were fired from the Cruze – police retrieved 10-mm shell casings – that struck the occupants of the Hyundai.

Investigators retrieved surveillance footage and Flock cameras helped partially recreate the path of the Cruze, which bore “an identifiable defect” that helped investigators track it to a gas station. There, a subject was spotted in distinctive clothing, subsequently linked to Skerett.

Court records also allege that Skerett fled to Minnesota and to the home of a family member. Skerett, records say, told his host he was wanted for murder. Skerett was promptly told to leave, records say, and then stole his host’s car.

Skerett will next appear Sept. 25, though few murder cases proceed at the first setting.

Skerett is the seventh suspect in La Salle County custody facing murder charges. Malcolm Whitfield awaits sentencing for a 2023 Streator shooting. Logan Petre is standing for an intermittent bench trial for allegedly strangling his father in Marseilles.

Nicolaus Phillips and Chastity Furar await new trial settings for a 2023 fatal shooting in Ottawa. Joshua Casey of Streator was charged earlier this year with strangling a woman. Most recently, Ronald Martin was charged in a double homicide in Sheridan.