A Will County jury has found a South Chicago Heights man guilty of the 2023 first-degree murder of a Joliet woman.
It took the jury less than 40 minutes on Monday to find Willie Banks, 48, guilty of the Dec. 13, 2023 fatal shooting of Alicia Cole, 40, at her Joliet residence, according to the court docket in Banks’ case.
Banks had also faced charges of home invasion, unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, and violation of a bail bond, but those charges were dropped before the trial began on July 22.
Banks served as his own lawyer during the trial, according to court records.
His sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 7.
About 10:40 p.m. on Dec. 13, 2023, officers responded to a 911 call from Cole, who reported a man was forcefully attempting to enter her home, according to a statement from Joliet police officials.
When officers arrived, they saw that a large window to the front of the residence was broken, and Banks was inside, police said.
Banks complied with officers’ orders to leave the residence through the front door, and he was held at the scene, police said.
Officers searched the residence and found Cole in a bathroom with multiple gunshot wounds, police said.
“This is an isolated incident as this shooting is believed to be domestic in nature,” police said.
Following Banks’ arrest, Joliet Police Chief Bill Evans released a statement following Cole’s murder.
“As your chief of police, I must share that my heart aches alongside the family and friends of Ms. Cole after her life was cut short by such a senseless act of violence,” Evans said.