DUPAGE COUNTY – A Chicago man was sentenced to 48 years in prison for shooting a pregnant woman in early 2022, according to the DuPage County State’s Attorney.

What we know:

Grant was sentenced to 48 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections on Friday. He will be required to serve 85% of his sentence before seeking parole.

Following a four-day-long trial, Lawrence Grant, 42, was found guilty of one count of attempted first degree murder, one count of aggravated battery with a firearm, and two counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm.

The backstory:

At about 7 p.m. on Jan. 28, 2022, Willowbrook police officers responded to the scene of a crashed vehicle on Route 83 in Willowbrook.

When officers arrived, they found a pregnant woman who had been shot in the back. She was transported to the hospital, where the baby was delivered while she was in surgery.

Both the baby and the mother survived, prosecutors said.

Prior to the crash, Grant, the victim and another person were involved in a verbal altercation that eventually turned physical in a nearby grocery store in the 6300 block of Kingery Highway.

After the altercation, all three people left the store in different vehicles, prosecutors said.

Lawrence Grant, 42 (DuPage County State’s Attorney)

Grant followed the victim in his vehicle and fired at her, striking the victim and her vehicle, causing the vehicle to crash, the state’s attorney’s office said.

Grant was found at the University of Chicago Hospital at about 10 p.m. that night, where he was admitted “on an unrelated matter,” prosecutors said.

The vehicle that Grant was traveling in was found on fire about a block from the hospital.

He was taken into custody after he was discharged from the hospital, authorities said.

RELATED: Chicago man found guilty of shooting pregnant woman in 2022: prosecutors

What they’re saying:

“After having his advances rejected by the victim and turning a verbal altercation with the victim’s boyfriend physical, Mr. Grant continued to escalate the matter with nearly fatal consequences,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said. “As the pregnant victim fled the scene, Mr. Grant shot at her from his car, striking her in the back and causing her to crash her vehicle. We are all very thankful that the woman and her unborn child survived this terrifying ordeal. Judge Guerin’s significant sentence imposed today sends a crystal-clear message that armed violence will not be tolerated in DuPage County.

The Source: Details for this story were provided by the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office.

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