Wadsworth man charged in shooting ambush pleads not guilty

A Wadsworth man police say ambushed a car full of men he had lured to his house pleaded not guilty Wednesday to a host of charges.

Joseph Hunter, 30, faces a possible life sentence if convicted of attempted murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, aggravated discharge of a firearm and unlawful use of a weapon by a felon.

Lake County Assistant State's Attorney James Newman said in the early morning hours of July 6, Hunter had a female friend call a Zion man and tell him she wanted to meet with him.

That man, another man from Zion and a Waukegan man who was driving followed the woman's directions to Hunter's residence in the 13000 block of Wadsworth Road.

As soon as the car pulled into the horseshoe-shaped driveway in front of Hunter's house, Newman said, Hunter opened fire with a rifle and shot between six and nine times at the car.

One of the bullets struck the driver in the pelvic area, Newman said, and he crashed the car while trying to escape Hunter's property.

Investigators from the Lake County sheriff's office found 7.62 mm shell casings outside the house and matching ammunition inside, Newman said, but did not recover any weapon.

One of the people inside the car identified Hunter as the shooter, Newman said, and picked his photograph out of an array of photos.

Another resident of the house told police that Hunter had a rifle he kept in a case and that she had seen the case empty just prior to the shooting, Newman said.

Newman said that because of sentencing enhancements for the use of a firearm to inflict great bodily harm, Hunter is facing a sentence of between 31 years and life in prison if convicted.

Circuit Judge John Phillips scheduled a trial of the case for Nov. 2 and ordered Hunter, who is being held on $1 million bond, to appear in court again Oct. 21.