Guilty plea in shooting at Elgin's Drake Field

ST. CHARLES TOWNSHIP -- A Rockford man pleaded guilty Thursday to ditching the gun used during a gang shooting last September at Elgin's Drake Field that sent parents, Pee Wee Football players and cheerleaders ducking for cover.

In a plea agreement that had been on the table for several weeks, Larrell Cannon, 25, of the 1900 block of Riverside Drive, agreed to a six-year prison term in exchange for a guilty plea to one count of unlawful use of a weapon by a felon. Cannon was on parole from prison at the time.

"He was not (directly) involved in the shooting," said Assistant State's Attorney Greg Sams outside the courtroom.

According to authorities, on Sept. 8, Cannon's co-defendant and brother, Denarrell Mabry, 21, of the same address, was involved in a dispute with a group of rival gang members near the intersection of Hastings Street and Illinois Avenue, a short distance from where a youth football league game was being played. Cannon and Mabry were there to watch family members who were playing and cheerleading, Elgin police said.

After an altercation, Mabry fired a chrome-colored handgun at the rival group, and then he and Cannon sprinted to a restaurant on the 800 block of St. Charles Street, Sams said.

The two suspects fled the eatery as police responded, during which time Mabry handed the pistol to his older brother, Sams said. Cannon tossed the gun into a nearby yard, but it -- and he -- soon were nabbed by officers.

The gunshots caused widespread panic at the game, as parents dove on top of their young children. Days later, Kaneland area parents who were at the game vowed not to bring their children to play in Elgin.

On Thursday, Cannon denied on the court record having any in-depth knowledge of the original dust-up that led to the shooting. A family member previously said Cannon was trying to protect Mabry from a larger group.

"I'd just like to say, I love my family," Cannon told Judge Allen Anderson. "I love my brother, and I just feel like I saved him. I saved his life and I'm proud of that."

Cannon's weapons charge -- normally a Class 3 felony -- was bumped up to a Class X because of his criminal history. At trial, he could have been sentenced to from six to 30 years in prison if convicted.

Cannon must serve at least 50 percent of his sentence, and will receive credit for the approximately eight months he has spent in jail awaiting trial.

Cannon, a parolee at the time of the Drake Field incident, had been serving prison time on a 2004 weapon violation conviction. He also has felony drug convictions on his record, according to court documents.

Mabry also is a convicted felon and was a parolee in September. He is charged with unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, aggravated discharge of a firearm, and aggravated discharge of a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school in connection with the Sept. 8 shooting.

Mabry is due in court next week on those charges.