Illinois Man Charged With Attempted Murder, Hate Crime After Allegedly Shooting White Neighbor With Black Sons
John P. Shadbar, an Illinois man who allegedly shot his neighbor several times in a racially motivated crime, was arrested on May 8 shortly after the shooting. In a statement released via Facebook, the Will County Sheriff’s Office said deputies responded to a neighborhood in Lockport Township, Illinois on May 7 around 5:30 p.m. after getting reports about a 45-year-old woman who her neighbor had shot.
Witnesses told police that Shadbar shot the woman outside and he was walking around his property with a rifle. Shadbar fired multiple shots at the woman “from different outside locations,” witnesses added. Security cameras also caught captured the shooting, NBC News reported.
Family members identified the 45-year-old woman as Melissa Robertson, who was rushed to the hospital in critical condition after being shot in the chest and hand. She is recovering after undergoing surgery, according to the sheriff’s office.
Speaking to NBC Chicago, Robertson’s family said Shadbar, who is 70 years old, has harassed them since they moved into the neighborhood 10 years ago.
Robertson, who is white, has two Black sons. One of Robertson’s sons, Mikeal Johnson, said Shadbar yelled slurs at them, saying “dead n-words, n-word this, n-word lover.”
“[He] called me the n-word straight to my face,” Johnson told NBC Chicago. “My mom made him apologize. A few days later he comes out holding a gun in his underwear.”
Robertson’s aunt, Jeanne Beyer, told NBC Chicago that Shadbar was yelling “dead n-word” during Tuesday’s shooting and he attempted to enter their backyard
Police said Shadbar hid inside his house after the shooting and didn’t come out until a crisis negotiator convinced him to exit with his hands up. Shadbar made “several incriminating statements,” per the press release.
Shadbar is now charged with nine felony charges, which include “attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery, felony possession of a firearm and a hate crime,” according to NBC Chicago’s report. Several weapons were removed from Shadbar’s home. Shadbar was denied pretrial release after he appeared in court.
Robertson’s family has since created a GoFundMe page raising nearly $12,000 out of their $75,000 goal
“She was shot in her own backyard, sustaining damage to her abdomen and hand. The shot to her stomach damaged her colon and spleen and shattered several ribs (which the surgeons removed). She had extensive surgery and is currently on a ventilator,” the page read in part. “She also will require reconstructive hand surgery. The bullet tore off quite a bit of her thumb and index finger. Ordinarily, they would amputate, but because the thumb is so important, the doctors will try to save it.”
Speaking with NBC Chicago, Johnson said, “She’s sedated due to the gravity of her injuries. She had a lot of pain.”
Robertson’s sister Theresa Robertson-Proano added that she is “fighting for her life right now.”
