Round Lake Beach man pleads not guilty in shooting

A Round Lake Beach man pleaded not guilty Friday to charges he shot a rival gang member outside a restaurant.

Oscar Lopez, 18, faces a prison sentence of up to 30 years if convicted of aggravated battery with a firearm.

Lake County Assistant State's Attorney Tim Niehus said Lopez, of the 300 block of Shorewood Drive, was a passenger in a car on Cedar Lake Road about 8:40 p.m. on April 1.

As the car approached a restaurant in the 1000 block of Cedar Lake Road, Niehus said, Lopez saw two members of a rival gang sitting at a table outside. Lopez fired three or four shots with a 9 mm pistol, Niehus said, and struck a 19-year-old man in the lower back.

That man remains hospitalized, Niehus said, and his exact medical condition is unknown.

Lopez was identified by the other man sitting outside the restaurant and was arrested later that night, Niehus said.

Associate Judge Theodore Potkonjak scheduled a trial of the case for July 16. He ordered Lopez, who is held on $500,000 bond, to appear in court June 21