18 Joliet Shooting Victims In December

JOLIET, IL — There were 18 shooting victims in the city of Joliet in December, a Joliet Patch Freedom of Information Act request reveals. On Christmas Eve alone, there were two separate shootings that left a total of seven people hospitalized with gunshot wounds.

Of the 18 gunshot victims, one person died. Quentin Woods, 38, of Joliet, was gunned down in broad daylight on a sidewalk in close proximity to St. Ray's Cathedral. A woman who was with him at the time was shot once in the stomach but survived. Joliet police officers swarmed the scene and made a swift arrest. Matthew Rutledge, 37, has been charged with first-degree murder.

The Friday afternoon homicide was hardly the city's only instance of violent crime during December.

Joliet Patch submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to Joliet police for all of December's shootings because the police department typically does not publicize information about violent crime in the city's neighborhoods unless it's a homicide.

Such was the case on Christmas Eve, when a total of five people were victims of gunshot violence on Cutter Avenue in Joliet's Forest Park area.

Joliet's police department chose not to issue a press release or hold a press conference about the shooting even though a single gunman left five people wounded.

The police department command staff also opted not to post any information about the Cutter Avenue shootings on the Joliet police Facebook page, either.

A month later, Joliet Patch learned through a FOIA request that the shooter still remains at large. No arrests have been made in connection with the Christmas Eve shooting on Cutter Avenue.

In total, Joliet Police responded to 10 separate city addresses in December — one shooting practically every three days — in which someone was wounded by gunfire.

Of the 10, only two shootings have resulted in an arrest.

One was the homicide in the Cathedral area. The other was a non-fatal shooting on Dec. 8 on Summit Street.

Here's a breakdown of the gun violence in the city of Joliet from December 2019:

December 28

2:12 a.m., intersection of Henderson and Jerome Avenues. Shooting victim: 26-year-old man. No arrests yet.

Listen to audio from calls reporting Joliet's Christmas Eve shootings:

December 24 (2 separate shootings

6:30 p.m., 1211 Cutter Ave. Five shooting victims: 32-year-old man, 26-year-old man, 60-year-old man, 35-year-old man and 31-year-old man. No arrests yet.

11:58 p.m. 816 N. Center St. Two shooting victims: 16-year-old male and 28-year-old man. No arrests yet.

December 23

2:35 p.m. 603 Elmwood Ave., 38-year-old man. No arrests yet.

December 20

1:52 p.m. 801 Sherwood Place. Two shooting victims: 38-year-old Quentin Woods, and a 36-year-old woman. Woods was found dead on the sidewalk. An arrest was made of Matthew Rutledge in connection with both shootings. Rutledge lived at that address, jail records show.

December 18

10:50 p.m., 400 Bridge St., 28-year-old man. No arrests yet.

December 10

5:15 p.m. intersection of Des Plaines and Shelby Streets. Two shooting victims: 32-year-old man and 26-year-old man. No arrests yet.

December 8 (two separate shootings)

10:20 p.m. Intersection of Dover Street and Youngs Avenue. Two shooting victims: 18-year-old man and 23-year-old man. No arrests yet.

5:06 p.m. 412 Summit St., 36-year-old man. According to Joliet Police, an arrest has been made in this crime.

December 6

3:36 p.m., 306 Willow Ave., 29-year-old man. No arrests yet.

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