Man Convicted Of 1994 Aurora Murder Let Out Too Soon: Prosecutors

AURORA, IL — Kane County prosecutors are urging the courts to reincarcerate a man who they say was released too early after serving more than two decades in prison for the 1994 killing of Armando Mendez.

Bonzell Joyner, 45, was sentenced in 1998 to spend his life in prison before an appellate court modified his sentence to 60 years. Of the nine men who were convicted in connection with Mendez’s killing, Joyner was the last to be released from prison, according to a report by the Aurora Beacon-News.

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Along with Joyner, two other men were also convicted of murder, while two pleaded guilty to attempted murder, two pleaded guilty to aggravated battery, two pleaded guilty to lesser charges and one man was acquitted by a jury, the report states.

Mendez was killed in October 1994 after being attacked by a group of men outside a Harper’s gas station in the 1100 block of East New York Street in Aurora, according to court records. He was 19.

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A witness testified at Joyner’s trial that Mendez was beaten by several men outside the gas station before a man walked up and shot Mendez once in the back of his head, court records show. Joyner was charged with and convicted of first-degree murder after police identified him as the shooter, the documents state.

Joyner’s profile on the Illinois Department of Corrections website shows he was released July 22, despite his projected discharge date being July 22, 2023.

The Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office attributes Joyner’s release to an error in calculating his sentence. After being convicted in 1998, Joyner received credit for serving 3,002 days — or about 8 years — in jail after his arrest, despite being arrested in 1994. Joyner should have received credit for 1,502 days, McMahon said.

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McMahon said his office is asking for a hearing on the sentencing error, as Joyner should not have been released until at least 2024. A hearing to resolve the sentencing error was scheduled for March 18, but it was canceled after the coronavirus outbreak forced the prolonged closure of courts throughout the state, McMahon said.

A new court date has not yet been set.

“We have asked the circuit court to set a hearing date as soon as possible so that we can rectify and resolve this issue and ensure that justice is fully served," McMahon said in a statement to Patch.

Mendez’s family is also calling for Joyner to be reincarcerated, the Aurora Beacon-News reports.

The Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office did not immediately return a request for comment Monday about Joyner’s release.

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