Lombard man gets 10 years for shooting ex-girlfriend's mother

A Lombard man was sentenced to 10 years in prison Tuesday after pleading guilty to shooting his ex-girlfriend's mother in a 2013 argument about a debit card.

Markeith Williams, 21, pleaded guilty to aggravated discharge of a firearm in exchange for prosecutors dropping several charges, including unlawful possession of a firearm by a street gang member, aggravated unlawful use of a weapon and aggravated discharge of a firearm.

Williams' attorney, Richard Kayne, told Judge Daniel Guerin the plea agreement was the state's final offer in the case.

Assistant State's Attorney Steve Knight, deputy chief of the special prosecutions unit, said Williams, of the 1100 block of Hunter Street in Lombard, was angry with his ex-girlfriend about their joint bank account in late January 2013 when he drove past her house and opened fire, striking her mother through a wall.

Knight said Williams sent a text message about 6 p.m. Jan. 22, 2013, threatening to shoot up his ex-girlfriend's Wheaton home after she initially refused to give him a debit card associated with a bank account they shared.

The girlfriend eventually sent a friend to put the card in Williams' mail box, but Williams didn't know that.

Less than two hours later, Williams drove past her house, on the 1400 block of Pembroke Lane, and fired one shot from a 9 mm handgun, Knight said. The bullet tore through a wall and other items before striking the ex-girlfriend's mother in the shoulder while she was in bed watching TV.

Williams must serve 85 percent of his sentence before facing two years of parole. He receives credit for the 784 days he's been held on $1 million bail since his arrest.