'Overwhelming Evidence, But It's All True Evidence': Charlie Baird's Mom

NEW LENOX — With more than three dozen family, friends and supporters of murder victim Charlie Baird seated in the courtroom gallery, Will County prosecutors Katie Rabenda and Christine Vukmir argued that they presented overwhelming evidence —evidence beyond a reasonable doubt — showing Kevin Johnson fatally shot New Lenox teenager Charlie Baird at the Circle K gas station on the night of May 10-11, 2020.

"Kevin Johnson is guilty of murdering Charlie Baird by shooting him in the back," Rabenda told Will County Judge Amy Bertani-Tomczak during the prosecution's closing arguments.

Two unusual traits about Johnson also connected him to the murder scene: he runs with an unusual bow-legged gait, with his feet pointing outward, the prosecutor noted. On Tuesday afternoon, Rabenda showed the judge several different videos showing that Baird's killer ran from the gas pump shooting scene back to his getaway car with a distinct bowlegged gait.

A Midlothian detective who saw the video of the New Lenox gas station shooting immediately notified New Lenox detectives that he recognized the bow-legged person as being Johnson.

The prosecution's PowerPoint slide read, "Shooter's Gait is Kevin Johnson's Gait."

"The defendant admits at booking that he can't put his feet together due to being injured in December 2019," Rabenda noted. "His left toe points outward when he walks."

At the time of the shooting, "Charlie immediately steps back and flees, (Johnson) chased him back toward the gas station, with his left foot toe extended and knee bent outward," Rabenda declared.

What's more, the prosecutor noted, Johnson always wore the same long-sleeved black athletic track apparel: black running pants and a black top that contained a long white stripe down the sides.

Rabenda displayed several videos for the judge showing Kevin Johnson wearing the very same black athletic apparel as the person who fatally shot Baird at the gas station.

The PowerPoint slide shown Tuesday afternoon in court included slides that read: "Shooter's Pants Are Kevin Johnson's Pants" and "Shooter's Shirt Is Kevin Johnson's Shirt" and "Shooter's Shoes Are Kevin Johnson's Shoes."

On April 20, 2020, in Glenwood while walking through a condominum complex parking lot late at night and in another video captured on May 11, 2020, about nine hours after the New Lenox shooting, following a wreck in Dolton, Johnson wore the same unique Nike shoes — black shoes with white markings —as the ones seen on the Circle K gas station surveillance video of Baird's murder, Rabenda noted.

"These are Kevin Johnson's shoes," Rabenda said.

Then, there was the DNA evidence and the eyewitness testimony pointing directly at Johnson's guilt, the prosecutors remarked.

Johnson's DNA was recovered from a blunt-style tobacco cigarette found under the back driver's side seat of the black Hyundai Santa Fe that was stolen from a Lockport homeowner's garage two days before the murder, the same vehicle used in the New Lenox murder, Rabenda noted.

"There's no reason for Kevin Johnson's DNA to be inside," Rabenda said.

Then, there was the eyewitness testimony from Marquez "Mac" Whitfield, who was brought to the Will County Courthouse twice during the past week from the Danville Correctional Center, where he is serving an unrelated prison term for a gun crime in Cook County.

He received use immunity from the prosecution in exchange for his testimony, testimony that was incriminating toward his own role in both the New Lenox murder and the Lockport stolen vehicle incident, Rabenda outlined.

"We can agree Mac is not an angel, he's in prison for a gun charge," Rabenda told the courtroom. "On May 9th, he went to Lockport and stole the SUV in the garage. He had the SUV in New Lenox, parked at the gas pumps, exited the stolen vehicle. He checked if the green car door (of Charlie Baird) was locked."

Whitfield testified last week that the shooter who killed Baird exited the stolen car wearing a black ski mask over his face and he wore "all black with a stripe on the side of his pants," Rabenda said.

About nine hours after the slaying, three people were involved in a crash in Dolton and "one was the shooter. The shooter did not have the gun at the time of the crash."

When the prosecution asked Whitfield last week to identify the New Lenox gas station shooter, he testified, "'the shooter is Kevin Johnson,' which matches all the evidence," Rabenda argued.

Defense: Gunshot Residue Tests Point To Johnson's Innocence

Will County Public Defender Samantha Kerins handled the closing arguments for Johnson's side. She insisted the stolen vehicle from Lockport cannot be definitely linked to the New Lenox murder scene. She reminded the judge that the gunshot residue tests taken from her client's black and white striped athletic outfit all came back as negative.

The clothes were seized by New Lenox police after Johnson, who was 16 at the time, was in custody at the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center in Chicago.

Kerins argued the actual shooter of Baird had a running style that was "almost cartoonish."

She insisted that the gas station surveillance videos played by the prosecution can't definitely prove that the killer wore the exact same outfit.

"Judge, they are making a big deal of these clothes as well," Kerins argued. "You can't tell exactly what they are wearing ... There's no gunshot residue. They want you to believe Kevin Johnson committed this shooting ... where's the gunshot residue because that gun apparently was with him until the 12th (of May) when he was arrested in Dolton?"

Kerins maintained that "the reason there is no gunshot residue is because my client is not the shooter ... There is nothing distinctive about my client's walk. Judge, it's simply not the case."

Kerins also implored the judge not to believe the testimony offered by Whitfield, who identified her client as the killer. She argued that Whitfield could have faced charges of felony murder for his own culpability.

"He lied, judge. He's a liar. It's the old adage. The first one to talk gets to walk. He was saving himself."

In criminal trials, the defense only gets one chance to make a closing argument. The prosecution always gets two chances.

Vukmir handled the finale for the Will County State's Attorney.

She suggested the Will County Public Defender's Office "wants you to ignore all the facts we have."

According to Vukmir, it was Midlothian Police Detective Detective Adam Thibo who saw the video footage of the New Lenox gas station shooting and immediately recognized the shooter's bow-legged gait as being Johnson.

"As she said, it's almost cartoonish how unique it is," Vukmir said of Kerins. "It was so unique that it stood out to (Detective Thibo) and he happened to have the same clothes on."

As for Whitfield, the eyewitness, who received a use immunity agreement during the trial, "You can't ignore what Marquez Whitifield said. He admitted involvement in the murder. He admitted he brought the gun. Things he did not have to admit ... Marquez admits he got out of the car, and he touched the car and (in the video) you can see two distinct individuals, different heights, different builds and very distinctive gaits."

Since being incarcerated in 2020, Johnson was also involved in "witness tampering," Vukmir argued, noting that during multiple jailhouse phone calls, he made threats to harm Whitfield and another witness, Amiya Savage.

"Are these actions of an innocent person?" Vukmir asked. "Are these actions of a person being framed? Judge, I submit to you they are not ... the fact that there is no GSR on the pants is not significant. This defendant, time after time after time, is wearing the same clothes. We have him in Glenwood with that same bow-legged walk. He was a 16-year-old boy, it's not uncommon, they don't wash their clothes.

"There is overwhelming evidence this defendant is the one who killed Charlie Baird on that night."

Judge Amy Bertani-Tomczak informed everyone to return to Courtroom 405 at 1 p.m. on Wednesday. She did not specifically say whether she would reveal her decision on Johnson's guilt or innocence, but added, "I need time to review all the evidence."

Charlie Baird's Mother Speaks With Reporters After Trial

On Tuesday afternoon, Jen Baird, Charlie's Baird's mother, spoke with Joliet Patch's editor outside the Will County Courthouse. She was very proud of the New Lenox Police Department's effort in obtaining the arrest of Johnson, a 16-year-old teenager from Harvey at the time.

"They did a great job. They had to come to my house to tell me what had happened," Jen Baird said. "You can imagine that doorbell ring, asking where it was, where it happened and happening in my town is unheard of. I've lived here for my kids all their lives, we've lived in New Lenox and there was nothing bad had ever happened until it happened to my family, so that was just overwhelming."

Jen Baird was also pleased with the prosecution team of Assistant Will County State's Attorneys Katie Rabenda, Christine Vukmir and Lauren Senko.

"They put all the pieces together ... and you know, he wore the same stuff. He had the same clothes on ... and you know, he was a thug. He was outside. He was out at 16 years old with a gun committing these crimes, going after people's cars to commit more crimes. It was overwhelming evidence, but it's all true evidence. They have him and they have him in this space in this spot in New Lenox and Charlie was even able to identify: ski mask and a black male. So he was able to identify his killer."