Insets, from left: Michael Wallace, Bobby Gipson (Macon County Jail) and Caleb Witty (Facebook). Background: The 2200 block of E. Johns Avenue where cops say Wallace and Gipson killed Caleb (Google Maps).
An Illinois man pleaded guilty to fatally shooting a 17-year-old boy at point-blank range as the teen shielded his sister during a robbery attempt on their walk home from a street festival.
Michael Wallace, 36, on Monday pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of 17-year-old Caleb Witty in Decatur. Wallace faces at least 40 years behind bars when he is sentenced Dec. 8.
The 2011 murder went unsolved for more than a decade, until cops arrested Wallace and Bobby Gipson, now 37, in 2024. Gipson is also facing first-degree murder charges and is slated to appear in court on Nov. 5.
Police said Caleb and his then-14-year-old sister were walking home from the Decatur Celebration street fest around 11:30 p.m. on Aug. 4, 2011. They were on the 2200 block of E. Johns Avenue when Wallace and Gipson tried to rob them, cops said.
Caleb shielded his sister, giving her time to run away. Police said the gunman shot him in the arm and chest.
Police said Wallace and Gipson fled. Caleb died.
After an investigation, detectives arrested the two suspects once witnesses came forward with crucial information.
"Today, thanks to the tireless efforts of our law enforcement community, Caleb's family, and ordinary people willing to do the right thing and come forward as witnesses, the defendant is held accountable for killing Caleb Witty," the Macon County State's Attorney's Office said in a statement to Law&Crime.
Gipson had since moved away from the area and was arrested in Tennessee. Wallace was arrested in Decatur. Both suspects have been in the Macon County Jail without bond ever since.
"Caleb Witty was a young man simply trying to enjoy an evening at the Decatur Celebration with his sister. And he was murdered for nothing," the Decatur Police Department said after it arrested the suspects. "Words cannot even describe the senselessness of this crime. His untimely death was a profound loss that left a deep void in the hearts of those who knew him."