Sept. 23--A convicted felon was ordered held without bail Wednesday after being charged with fatally shooting a 28-year-old woman in the Morgan Park neighborhood earlier this month.
Darrick "Nelson" Wells, 36, was charged Tuesday with first-degree murder for the Sept. 3 killing of Claudia Mister, 27, outside of the Black Cat Lounge on the 1600 block of West 115th Street, prosecutors said at his bond court hearing.
Wells had previously been convicted of attempted murder, aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, possession of a firearm in public and possession of a defaced firearm, according to Assistant Cook County State's Attorney Joseph Dibella.
Wells was arrested by the U.S. marshals in Cedar Rapids on Sept. 14 after an outstanding warrant was issued in Mister's homicide case, police said.
According to prosecutors, at 2:48 a.m. on Sept. 3, Mister and several friends were outside of the nightclub when Wells allegedly approached the group and began firing. Mister was struck four times.
According to a witness, the gunman walked up to the group and began firing and then fled. A surveillance video showed Wells pacing back and forth in the parking lot of the club with a gun in his hand before the shooting, according to Dibella.
Mister, of the 10600 block of South Church Street, was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn and pronounced dead at 5:35 a.m., according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.
An autopsy Sept. 4 determined Mister died of multiple gunshot wounds, and her death was ruled a homicide, according to the office.
After the shooting, police released a community alert which included a photograph of the suspect from the video tape. Someone gave police Well's name and two other people identified Wells as the shooter, according to prosecutors.
After the shooting, Wells fled to Iowa where he was arrested by police. Wells identified himself as the person in the video, according to prosecutors.
DiBella told Judge Maria Ciesil Kuriakos there was no known relationship between Wells and the woman killed or any of the four people in the group with her at the time. In addition to Mister, one man in the group suffered a graze wound, Dibella said.
Wells' attorney said his client is married, with four children and was working for a temporary labor agency in Iowa.
Prosecutors said he was sentenced to nine years in Illinois state prison for attempted murder and five years in Illinois state prison for an aggravated unlawful use of a weapon conviction. He was also previously sentenced to 24 months probation after being convicted of possession of a fire arm in public and possession of a defaced firearm.
