Peoria Standard

Erick D. Jackson, 21, received an 80-year prison sentence in Peoria County for his involvement in a 2022 shooting that resulted in the death of a 15-year-old boy and injured another man. The sentencing took place on November 14, 2025.

A jury found Jackson guilty in September of first-degree murder and aggravated battery with a firearm. Judge Paul Bauer ordered Jackson to serve 70 years for the murder and an additional 10 years for the battery charge, with sentences to be served consecutively. Under Illinois law, he must complete the entire sentence for the murder conviction.

The incident occurred on November 7, 2022, when police responded to ShotSpotter alerts indicating gunfire near the former Quest Charter Academy. Officers discovered two victims: Merian Smith, age 15, who had been shot in the head and later died, and an adult man who suffered a non-life-threatening injury.

Evidence collected included surveillance footage showing three individuals running past a garage around the time of the shooting. Fingerprints at the scene matched Jackson’s. Police recovered three sets of shell casings and later executed a search warrant at Jackson's residence. A firearm was seized, and ballistics testing linked it to shell casings from the crime scene.

During sentencing proceedings, Assistant State’s Attorney Kristin Alferink addressed the court: “The shooting occurred in broad daylight just after school had let out, and it was a miracle no one else was injured or killed.” She requested that Jackson receive a lengthy prison term.

Peoria County schools have seen varied enrollment patterns across different demographics during recent years. In the 2022-23 school year, Peoria High School had the highest number of Black students enrolled among local schools (798 students), while Lincoln School led in Hispanic student enrollment (218 students). Richwoods High School recorded the highest number of multiracial students (182), and Dunlap High School had the most white students enrolled (873). These statistics reflect overall countywide trends as documented by state education data: https://www.isbe.net/Pages/Home.aspx

The county's educational system reported an average student-to-teacher ratio of 15-to-1 during this period, with more than 27,000 students and nearly 1,850 full-time faculty members working across its schools: https://www.isbe.net/Pages/Home.aspx Teacher absenteeism rates stood at approximately 32%, slightly below Illinois’ statewide average: https://www.isbe.net/Pages/Home.aspx