Cathedral Area Killer Matthew Rutledge, 41, Found Guilty

JOLIET, IL — Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow announced on Friday night that Will County Judge Carmen Goodman has found Matthew Rutledge, 41, guilty of three counts of first-degree murder, one count of attempted murder and one count of aggravated battery with a gun in the December 20, 2019, Friday afternoon shooting along a Cathedral Area sidewalk.

The victims were a man and his sister and the verdict follows a bench trial that started May 16, 2023, and concluded Friday, prosecutor spokeswoman Carole Cheney announced.

Sentencing will be on November 17 and Rutledge is eligible for a sentence of 45 years to life in the Illinois Department of Corrections.

According to Glasgow's staff:

On December 20, 2019, Quentin Woods and his sister Tiffany Williams, with whom Rutledge had been in a relationship, went to Rutledge’s residence on the 800 block of Sherwood Place looking for money that was missing from a withdrawal she had made earlier that day.

Rutledge and his wife were home and an argument ensued. Rutledge pulled out a gun and both of the victims ran outside. Rutledge shot Woods 10 times, and Tiffany once.

Woods suffered multiple gunshot wounds to his head, neck, left shoulder, back, abdomen, and other areas, and he was found dead on the sidewalk from his injuries.

In Friday's announcement, Glasgow thanked Assistant State’s Attorneys Mark Fleszewski, Erin Krone, Jonathon Sakellaropoulos, Victim Witness Advocate Jessica Gil, Technical Specialist Albert Bailey, Legal Secretary Traci Knutson, and the Joliet Police Department for their outstanding work in this matter.