ROCK ISLAND, Ill. (AP) - A western Illinois man was sentenced to 25 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to a first-degree murder charge for a 2013 Rock Island shooting death.
Forty-five-year-old Gene Whitney was sentenced Wednesday in Rock Island County Circuit Court. He pleaded guilty as part of a deal with prosecutors in November.
The Silvis man was charged with shooting 43-year-old East Moline resident Lee Jump last March. Authorities say the two men spent the day working on motorcycles in a Rock Island garage before a fight. Jump had a single gunshot wound to the back of his head.
During Thursday’s hearing, Whitney apologized.
Two other men have pleaded guilty to concealing a homicide in connection with the case.
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