A 36-year-old Sleepy Hollow man pleaded guilty Friday to beating a 61-year-old Lake in the Hills man after his motorcycle group forced the victim off the road and proceeded to assault him.
McHenry County State’s Attorney Randi L. Freese announced that Julio C. Salas entered a blind plea of guilty to one count of Aggravated Battery in a Public Place, a class 3 felony. Because the plea was entered as a blind plea, there was no agreement as to sentencing. The sentence will be determined solely by the Court.
According to prosecutors, in June a group of motorcyclists riding with Salas confronted the victim on Virginia Road in Lake in the Hills, forcing him to stop his vehicle before launching sustained physical attacks during which Salas repeatedly struck the victim with his fists and used a motorcycle helmet as a weapon.
Sentencing is scheduled for September 11 at 1:30pm. At that hearing, the Court will consider the pre-sentence investigation report, victim impact evidence, and arguments in aggravation and mitigation before determining the appropriate sentence.
“This man admitted his guilt for an act of senseless violence that turned an ordinary drive into a terrifying ordeal for the victim,” said Freese. “”No one should fear being forced off the roadway and violently assaulted simply for traveling our streets. We will present the full extent of Salas’s conduct at sentencing and seek a sentence that seeks the seriousness of this offense and the lasting impact on the victim.”
