A Round Lake Beach man pleaded guilty to second-degree murder Tuesday in the shooting of two brothers who stole his car, Lake County prosecutors said.
Lynell Glover had been scheduled to be retried in the shooting that killed Anthony Awad, 17, and wounded Jonathan Awad on Jan. 3, 2021. Glover had been found guilty of second-degree murder in a 2022 trial, but the conviction was overturned on appeal.
Several days before the shooting, the brothers stole Glover’s car, authorities said. On the night of the shooting, a friend called Glover to say he had seen the car at a gas station. Glover drove over and confronted the brothers, firing a gun at them after the stolen car stalled or ran out of gas near Volo, authorities said.
A jury in 2022 convicted Glover of second-degree murder after deliberating several days. The panel declined to find him guilty of first-degree murder.
The case was overturned on appeal after Glover’s attorneys argued that the jury’s deliberations were influenced by a prosecution PowerPoint presentation that had been sent to the jury room by mistake along with evidence from the trial. The appeals court agreed, and it ordered a new trial.
Glover’s retrial was scheduled to begin this week.
“Although we disagree with the appellate court’s decision to reverse this defendant’s 2022 conviction, this negotiated plea ensures this defendant is still held accountable for taking the life of a 17-year-old,” State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said.
“We worked closely with the victim’s family before proceeding with the plea, and we hope that this provides some closure for them, even though Anthony can’t be brought back,” Rinehart said.
