Man sentenced to 28 years in carjacking

PEORIA --A judge has handed down a maximum 28-year prison sentence to a Peoria man who mugged and carjacked a Varna woman in a mall parking lot in December of 2007.

Authorities say 53-year-old William Ransom received the maximum sentence Friday under a plea agreement reached in December. When he sentenced Ransom, who has 18 prior felonies, Peoria County Circuit Judge Michael Brandt said extreme cases require extreme sentences.

Police say Ransom approached 50-year-old Karen Kinsey as she walked to her car and demanded her keys. He struck her during the ensuing scuffle, inflicting injuries that required stitches.

Officers say he also struck an off-duty Creve Coeur police officer with Kinsey's car as he drove off, but did not injure him.