A Peoria teenager will remain at the Peoria County Jail before a trial on first-degree murder charges after a petition to deny him pre-trial release was granted Monday in Peoria County Circuit Court.
Circuit Judge Mark Gilles said during a detention hearing Monday that Cedric D. Kennedy, 18, posed a real and present threat to the safety of the community, with no condition being in place that would mitigate the threat to the public if he was released prior to a trial in the shooting death of Elisha Gilbert, 20, on Oct. 26 in the 3200 block of North Isabell Avenue.
Gilles said that the nature and circumstances of the crime were “drastic,” with Gilbert losing his life and a passenger with him injured. He felt that neither person was prepared for Kennedy’s actions in this matter, also noting that shell casings found at the scene matched a gun belonging to Kennedy and that he had a long juvenile and adult history of criminal offenses.
Peoria County Assistant State’s Attorney Terry Muench said during Monday’s hearing that at 8:24 p.m. on Oct. 26, officers responded to the scene after they received a report of someone being shot. Upon arrival, they found Gilbert and another person in the car, both with gunshot wounds. They were transported to a local hospital. Gilbert would later succumb to his injuries.
During an investigation into the shooting, officers discovered that Gilbert and his passenger were traveling to a weed sale where he would sell someone a small amount of cannabis. However, when Gilbert arrived at the sale, a man wearing a grey sweatshirt came up to the window and fired the bullets that would hit both Gilbert and the passenger.
As they drove away, Gilbert began to choke and the car eventually crashed. Surveillance footage taken from a nearby business showed three individuals walking across the parking lot, with a man in a grey sweatshirt holding something that was consistent with a firearm.
A gun was eventually recovered that matched the shell casings found at the scene, with the person who had the gun saying that he got it from a third party, later revealed to be someone named “Ced.”
Officers obtained a search warrant for Kennedy’s phone, with images found on the device showing Kennedy wearing a grey sweatshirt and videos showing him with a weapon matching the one found at the scene, prosecutors said.
Chats were also found showing Kennedy claiming he traded the weapon to a person named “Rio” and saying that anyone on the chat needed to be quiet about his alleged actions. A juvenile on the chat told investigators that Kennedy had told him he had killed Gilbert, according to prosecutors.
Kennedy was found on Dec. 11 and after a foot chase with police, was apprehended in the 2700 block of North Bigelow Street and taken into custody. At the time of his arrest, Peoria police said that he had four active warrants on him.
Muench said that there was no condition that would mitigate the danger to the public if he was released, saying that the nature and circumstances of the crime, along with a long criminal history, made it difficult to release him prior to trial. He noted that Kennedy had access to firearms and a long criminal history, which included juvenile cases of mob action, domestic battery, possession of a stolen vehicle and residential burglary all in 2025.
He was also out on pre-trial release on aggravated DUI charges in the March 22 death of Ian Harvey, a 25-year-old East Peoria man who was killed riding his motorcycle along North University Street in Peoria.
Muench said that Gilbert’s death was “senseless,” with no provocation for what had occurred.
Assistant Public Defender Jonathan McEldowney said that Kennedy was willing to abide by pre-trial conditions including GPS monitoring, home confinement and a requirement to remain in his residence when not going to work or attending school. He noted that Kennedy was currently trying to get his high school diploma and was caring for a 9-month-old daughter at home.
Arraignment is set for Jan. 8 at 9 a.m., with Circuit Judge Sean Donohue presiding over the proceedings. In the aggravated DUI case, a hearing to revoke Kennedy’s pre-trial release is set for Thursday at 1 p.m.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Peoria teen to be held on murder charges in ‘senseless’ fatal shooting
Reporting by Zach Roth, Peoria Journal Star / Journal Star
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