PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) – A Peoria teenager was sentenced Friday to seven years in prison in connection with a deadly shooting at a Peoria County liquor store almost two years ago.

Jared Williams, 19, apologized before the sentence was handed down and said he wished he could take back what he did on Aug. 26, 2023, when he shot and killed Mason Loy, 21, of Havana.

But Loy’s friends and family would have nothing of it and left as the hearing ended. One man called him a coward as he walked out. Another called him a murderer. The outbursts capped what was a highly emotional and unusual hearing.

Williams was found guilty at an April jury trial of second-degree murder instead of the more serious charge of first-degree murder as sought by prosecutors. He was accused of shooting Loy, who was found

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