Oak Forest Man Sentenced After Firing Gun During 2020 Protest: Judge

OAK FOREST, IL — An Oak Forest man has been sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to firing a gun he illegally had during a Chicago protest in May of 2020, according to prosecutors.

Kevin Tunstall, 30, was arrested on May 30, 2020, in the midst of protests surrounding the killing of George Floyd. Police said they found Tunstall near State and Harrison streets in The Loop at around 1:30 a.m. after hearing gunshots coming from the area.

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While Tunstall was not allowed to have a gun due to a prior felony conviction for harassing a witness in 2016, police said he was in possession of a loaded .40 caliber Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistol at the time of his arrest.

At Tunstall's sentencing hearing Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Thomas Durkin said he was impressed at Tunstall's ability to take responsibility for his actions. The Oak Forest man told prosecutors he was drunk while firing the weapon.

A police report detailing the incident says officers heard gunshots fired from the parking lot at the southeast corner of the intersection and one of them saw someone reloading a gun. The report also states they saw a group of people surrounding a black Jeep and flee the area as more police arrived.

Tunstall was seen entering the back of the Jeep and "leaning forward" with his hands near his waist, according to an affidavit, and moments later was removed from the car by a police officer.

At that point, prosecutors said a "metallic object fell to the ground" and police "heard the sound of a firearm hitting the ground" as no one else was in the Jeep. Two fired cartridge cases and two live cartridges were also found in the area near Tunstall, an affidavit says.

Prosecutors said in February Tunstall was caught admitting to having fired the gun in a recorded jailhouse phone call. After Tunstall pleaded guilty, he became the third person to do so for a crime related to the civil unrest in downtown Chicago during the summer of 2020 and Wednesday became the second person sentenced.