Cook County prosecutors on Thursday charged a second man — the shooting suspect — in the April 10 slaying of a Cook County judge and the wounding of his girlfriend.
Earl Wilson, 45, allegedly shot the girlfriend in the left leg and then shot Associate Judge Raymond Myles five times when he tried to intervene outside his Far South Side residence.
The man suspected of being the getaway driver was charged two weeks ago and is being held in the County Jail without bond.
The Chicago Tribune has obtained video from the residence of a neighbor of the judge. The video does not capture the shooting itself but still shows snippets of the gunman arriving as well as fleeing after the shooting.
The time stamp on the video is off by exactly one hour. The shooting took place shortly before 5 a.m.
1) View: from Camera 3 looking northeast down the alley behind the judge’s house. Time: about 4:27:15 to 4:28:03 a.m.
The headlights of a car appear at the far end of the alley behind the judge’s house. The car then heads toward the camera. As the red Pontiac Sunfire with a sunroof rolls close by the camera, the passenger appears to be dressed in black and wearing a winter cap. The passenger exits the car just out of view of the camera, but his shadow appears on the pavement of the alley. He holds something in his right hand.
2) View: from Camera 4 looking southeast down the alley toward the direction of the judge’s house. Time: about 4:27:30 to 4:28:35 a.m.
The Pontiac appears and stops in the alley. The gunman, sitting in the front seat, steps out. As he does, he faces toward the camera, but it’s too dark to clearly make out his face. However, the license plate number is visible — key evidence that allowed police to track down the man suspected of being the getaway driver, Joshua T. Smith, whose former girlfriend owns the Pontiac. The passenger stands by the car with the door open for some seconds before he leans down and then closes the door. He then begins to walk south down the alley as the Pontiac drives past him and disappears from view. The passenger walks the full length of the alley and out of camera view.
3) View: from Camera 1 from the front of a home on the same side of South Forest Avenue as the judge’s home looking southwest toward 95th Street. Time: about 4:29:32 to 4:29:50 a.m.
The gunman emerges on foot from a T-alley just south of the judge’s home. He briefly walks north along Forest Avenue on the sidewalk, then turns right and appears to enter a driveway or walkway of the judge’s home before disappearing from camera view.
4) View: from Camera 2 from the front of a home on the same side of South Forest Avenue as the judge’s home looking northwest. Time: about 4:31:42 to 4:41:21 a.m.
The Pontiac turns onto the South Forest block and parks some distance from the judge’s home. The driver, apparently the only occupant, emerges from the car. At one point, he opens the hood. He stands outside the car for about seven minutes before re-entering the car. The headlights come on about 4:41:10 and the car pulls away heading south on Forest. As the car passes closer to the camera and under a streetlight, it appears to be the Pontiac Sunfire.
5) View: from Camera 4. Time: about 4:49:05 to 4:49:23 a.m.
Two cats scurry down the alley several houses from the camera in apparent reaction to the sound of gunfire. Almost 30 seconds later, the gunman comes running in the alley north toward the camera. He appears to be carrying a gun in his right hand and a gym bag in his left hand that police say he snatched from the judge’s girlfriend.
6) View: from Camera 3. Time: about 4:49:05 to 4:49:20 a.m.
The gunman comes running north down the alley past the camera. He pauses and paces around for a few seconds before walking through a gangway or backyard headed toward Calumet Avenue.
7) View: from Camera 1. Time: about 4:56:55 to 4:59:17 a.m..
Chicago police and fire personnel arrive on the scene with their emergency lights activated. About 4:58:47, a worker pushes a stretcher toward the judge’s house.
