‘You took a father who loved his daughter’: Lockport man convicted in murder of Rockdale man

A Lockport man pleaded guilty to the second-degree murder of a man killed in 2020 in a Joliet shooting as part of plea deal with prosecutors.

Since July 6, 2020, Dartavius Payton, 29, had been facing a charge of first-degree murder in connection with the death of Todd Taylor, 20, of Rockdale, who was killed in an April 28, 2020, shooting.

That changed Wednesday, when prosecutors agreed to drop the charge, and Payton agreed to plead guilty to a new charge of second-degree murder.

Under Illinois law, a person is guilty of second-degree murder when they believe they are justified in the killing but their belief is unreasonable.

Payton faced a lesser penalty as a result of the new charge. His sentencing range was between four and 20 years.

Will County Judge Vincent Cornelius decided to sentence Payton to 18 years in prison.

But Payton may only serve closer to four years in prison.

That’s because he is required to serve at least 50% of that prison sentence. He also received credit for already serving almost five years in jail.

Payton’s attorneys planned to present evidence that Payton was acting in self-defense in the shooting that led to Taylor’s death, Will County Assistant State’s Attorney Tricia McKenna said.

She said there were firearms found near Taylor’s body.

McKenna said investigators analyzed Payton’s cellphone and found a group chat in which the topic of “seeking revenge” was discussed.

Taylor’s family was crying as they told Cornelius in victim impact statements how their lives were tragically affected by Taylor’s death.

Jessica Klimara, the mother of Taylor’s daughter, told Cornelius that Taylor had “goals and dreams like everyone else.” She said her daughter’s life will “never be normal” because of his death.

“You took a father who loved his daughter,” Klimara said.

In 2022, Taylor’s father, Todd Taylor Sr., 42, was shot and killed in Joliet Township.

Taylor’s father was targeted in that shooting, Will County Sheriff’s Deputy Chief Dan Jungles said.

The investigation of the fatal shooting remains ongoing as of Wednesday, Will County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Kevin Hedemark said.