Jury convicts man of first-degree murder in fatal Antioch shooting

A Lake County jury on Friday convicted 28-year-old Johnathon Skroko of first-degree murder in connection with a 2022 fatal shooting in Antioch.

Skroko was first charged in September 2022, after Antioch police and the Lake County Major Crimes Task Force responded to a home in Antioch. Officers found Robbie Dickerson, 42, with gunshot wounds, face down in a bathtub. He was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.

The jury trial began on Aug. 24, lasting five days. Prosecutors, Assistant State’s Attorneys Lauren Kalcheim Rothenberg and Daniel Lenzini, called more than 30 witnesses, including law enforcement officers and experts.

During the trial, jurors heard testimony that Dickerson had gone to the apartment to meet with Skroko’s codefendant, Hailey Miller, to sell her a prescription drug. A witness who had accompanied Dickerson to the apartment testified about waiting outside and hearing two gunshots. The witness testified that they eventually drove away from the home and called 911, authorities said.

Miller testified that before Dickerson arrived, Skroko told her he planned to rob Dickerson. She told jurors Skroko confronted Dickerson with a firearm and ultimately shot him twice.

Miller said after the shooting Skroko told her that they needed to flee. The two traveled to Wisconsin and other locations in Illinois before eventually staying at a hotel in Gurnee, where they were arrested, authorities said.

Five firearms were eventually recovered. Experts in the field of ballistics, fingerprints, DNA, pathology, and forensic cellphone analysis testified. The defendant’s DNA was found on the murder weapon, authorities said.

Skroko claimed he acted in self-defense, telling jurors he shot Dickerson because he lunged at him. Prosecutors argued Skroko’s testimony was inconsistent with the physical evidence.

The jury found him guilty of first-degree murder after deliberating for one hour.

Skroko also was found guilty of personally discharging the firearm. He is facing a minimum of 45 years to natural life in the Illinois Department of Corrections.

Hailey Miller pleaded guilty to armed robbery on Dec. 10, 2024. She is a facing a sentencing range of six to 25 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. Her next court hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. Sept. 15.