JACKSON CO.—The man who is alleged to have shot another on East Jackson Street in Carbondale in late July entered a plea of “not guilty” yesterday in Jackson County court.
Ronald Sanders Jr.
In a case that has many scratching their heads at the charge as filed, Ronald E. Sanders Jr., 23, of Murphysboro, entered the plea Tuesday, September 3, 2013, to a count of Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon. The charge came August 1 after a July 31 shooting that gravely injured Donathan Brown, once again being reported as age 32 (although some records have him at 38), his head injury so severe that it prompted physicians to transfer him from the hospital in Carbondale to a St. Louis hospital. Brown died Aug. 2.
Yet Sanders isn’t charged with anything in connection with the death: no homicide charge of any kind has been filed against him.
Worse, the Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon count, a Class 4 felony only, carries with it a sentencing range of only one to three years in prison, and a fine of up to $25,000.
And even worse than that, the bail on Sanders’ release from jail, should he make it, is only $150,000—or $15,000 cash.
During testimony yesterday, Carbondale’s police chief, Sgt. Antony Williams, gave testimony about what Sanders told authorities after he was apprehended the next day following the shooting, in that Sanders said he “fired only one shot into the air as he was walking across the street to get into a car.” Sanders apparently wanted the authorities to believe he was just being reckless by firing into the air…despite the fact that witnesses told authorities that Sanders’ alleged shot was only the first of many. Muddying the waters some was the fact that there was return fire, and that witnesses told authorities that there were as many as 30 shots fired in the ensuing mob action.
No other arrests were made in conjunction with the incident, despite the mob scene that broke out as Sanders got away.
Mike Carr
Authorities—chief among them, the county’s duly-elected prosecutor, Mike Carr—believe that it’s impossible to determine which of those 30 shots was the one that Sanders fired “into the air.”
Sanders reportedly tossed the weapon into Crab Orchard Lake just off Highway 13 outside Carbondale a few hours after the incident, which went down around 8 p.m.
It would appear, therefore, that Carr may merely be waiting on ballistics in the case to file further charges, as it’s unclear from reports whether the weapon was recovered, or if this is still pending. Carr has made little comment as to whether he intends to pursue further charges against Sanders, since Brown’s injuries did lead to his death a short time later. While Carr is currently under scrutiny over the Molly Young case, he seems to be approaching this one very carefully, despite the fact that a number of Carbondale residents have expressed outrage over the fact that no homicide charges have been filed.
A reduction in Sanders’ bond down to $10,000 was denied yesterday, and Sanders remains incarcerated at the Jackson County Detention Center.