Crystal Lake man sent to prison for brutal attack on disabled nephew

A Crystal Lake man who admitted to brutal attack that left his disabled nephew with a fractured bone over an eye was sentenced Tuesday to three years in prison by a judge who labeled his behavior "the actions of a bully."

Wilfredo Quinones, 39, of the 100 block of Elmhurst, was sentenced on his conviction of aggravated domestic battery in connection with the May 22 assault that authorities say came as retribution for his nephew calling the police on him for a previous altercation.

Judge Sharon Prather issued the sentence after hearing testimony from Quinones' 20-year-old nephew, who described the attack in the kitchen of an apartment they shared with his grandmother.

"He came up to me and threw a hard first at me," said the victim, who suffered a traumatic brain injury in a fall from a second-story deck as a toddler and now has limited use of the right side of his body. "I was scared he was going to kill me."

He told Prather his uncle punched him in the face 10 to 15 times, leaving him with a fractured orbital bone, bloody lip, sore jaw and facial bruises.

Asked what would happen if his uncle were freed today, the victim replied: "I'm moving to St. Louis."

Given a chance to speak in court, Quinones first apologized to the judge, but then at Prather's urging turned to face his nephew.

"If I could erase it, I would erase it," he said. "I'm very, very sorry, from the bottom of my heart, dude."

County prosecutors were seeking the maximum 7-year term, noting that Quinones already has three prior domestic battery convictions, as well as convictions for drug possession, battery and unlawful restraint.

"There's nothing else you can do with people like this but hit them back so hard you knock the fight out of them," said Assistant McHenry County State's Attorney Patrick Kenneally.