Judge sentences Bolingbrook man to life for murder of Joliet mother

A man was sentenced to life in prison after a jury found him guilty of shooting a woman to death and endangering her 2-year-old daughter who he left inside of the vehicle in Joliet with her mother’s lifeless body.

On Monday, Will County Judge Dave Carlson told Jermaine Mandley, 48, of Bolingbrook, that his actions in the Jan. 7 killing of Maya Smith, 24, were brazen, callous, brutal, heartless, soulless and cold. He said Mandley showed “zero remorse.”

“I can’t think of a crime that I’ve dealt with in this courtroom that was equally selfish and filled with depravity,” Carlson said.

Carlson’s sentence of natural life for Mandley was met with applause by Smith’s family in the courtroom.

On Aug. 17, a jury found Mandley guilty of the first-degree murder of Smith, who was shot to death inside of a vehicle parked in an alley near the South Side Civic Club, 1214 Oakland Ave., Joliet.

Smith’s daughter – who was inside of the vehicle and in close proximity to the shooting – was left inside the vehicle after Mandley shot Smith to death, according to prosecutors.

Mandley was dating Smith at one point last year even though he was married to another young woman, according to trial testimony. He was investigated last year by Channahon police over allegations that he attacked her.

On Monday, Bonnie Winfrey, Smith’s great aunt, read a statement to Carlson on behalf of Smith’s mother, Melissa Sims.

Sims’ statement said her life changed forever when she received a phone call about her daughter and learned how her granddaughter was left inside of the vehicle for six-and-half hours wet, frightened and hungry. She said her granddaughter still asks for her mother and has trouble sleeping.

“I couldn’t even imagine having to bury my daughter, my beautiful daughter,” Sims’ statement said.

Sims was standing next to Winfrey when she was reading her statement. Afterward, Sims walked back to the courtroom gallery but she took one look at Mandley, who did not look back at her.

Carlson read a statement from another family member who said Smith realized Mandley was a loser who could not take rejection.

Prosecutors recommended a lengthy sentence for Mandley. Throughout the trial, they presented a wide array of videos, text messages, witness statements and other evidence that linked Mandley to the crime.

One of Mandley’s attorney, Zack Strupeck, told Carlson that the minimum sentence in the case is 45 years. Mandley would be released from prison at 93 if he was given that sentence, he said.

“I don’t think there is a number here that is not technically a life sentence,” Strupeck said.

When Mandley was given the opportunity to speak, he went on a lengthy tirade about how felt he was not treated fairly during the trial and that he was “cheated” by his attorneys from seeing all of the discovery in his case.

Mandley denied that he was trying to evade arrest, he denied he was inside of Smith’s vehicle at the time of the incident and he claimed the witnesses were lying and may have been coached in their testimony.

Mandley claimed his attorneys “rushed me into a trial.” One of Mandley’s two attorneys shook his head while another expressed bafflement at many of Mandley’s statements.

“I should’ve went pro se,” Mandley said.

Carlson, in turn, told Mandley that Smith was the one who was not treated right and she was the one who was cheated out of her life.

“You did the cheating,” Carlson said to Mandley.

Mandley has been responsible for the deaths of two other people, according to Will County State’s Attorney’s James Glasgow’s Office. Mandley was previously convicted of reckless homicide of a Chicago pastor and his wife while driving under the influence.

In a statement, Glasgow called Mandley “evil incarnate.”

“He ruthlessly fired at least [seven] shots at Maya Smith with her infant daughter just inches away. The sadistic executioner was caught on video saying, ‘killed that [expletive]’ and ‘she dead – call that [expletive] now,’” Glasgow said.

Glasgow said that although Mandley’s life sentence can never bring Smith back, he is “exorcised from civilized society for the remainder of his satanic life.”