Naperville man gets 15 years for shooting at tattoo session
If you’re looking for a tattoo artist, you can probably do better than Dale Flagg.
The Naperville man was sentenced Thursday to 15 years in prison for shooting a man during an apparent tattoo session in Addison.
Authorities said Flagg, 23, had agreed to tattoo the victim — then a 19-year-old Villa Park man — for $150 last February.
But after meeting at an apartment on the 600 block of Meadows Boulevard, he pulled a gun and ordered his would-be client to disrobe and empty his pockets.
Flagg opened fire when the victim ran, striking him once in the leg, Assistant State’s Attorney Steve Knight said.
Three friends waiting outside took the victim to a hospital, where he was treated for a “through-and-through” bullet wound, according to prosecutors.
The victim told police he didn’t know Flagg but arranged to be tattooed by him through a third party.
The defense contended the meeting was actually a drug deal, but prosecutors maintained there was no evidence to back up that claim.
It wasn’t clear what prompted the shooting, authorities said.
“What is crystal clear is that this guy is nothing more than a gangbanging, gun-toting thug who thinks he can do whatever he wants in this county,” Knight said.
Flagg pleaded guilty in December to aggravated battery with a firearm. In exchange, prosecutors capped their sentence recommendation at 15 years when he otherwise faced up to 30.
DuPage County Judge Kathryn Creswell imposed what amounted to a maximum term Thursday. By law, Flagg must serve 85 percent, or nearly 13 years.
He had prior convictions for weapons offenses, prosecutors said.