2021 Racine fatal shooting; Illinois man accused in custody, $1M bond
RACINE, Wis. - A 24-year-old Waukegan, Illinois man is now in custody and going through the court process in connection with the Oct. 2021 homicide of a 31-year-old Racine man. The accused is Christopher Martinez. He was charged in February 2022 with the following criminal counts:
- First-degree intentional homicide
- Attempted armed robbery with use of force
Christopher Martinez
According to the criminal complaint, Racine police responded late on Oct. 4, 2021 to a residence on Monroe Avenue just south of Kinzie Avenue regarding suspicious circumstances after a man called about a possible home invasion.
When officers arrived on the scene, they located a man in the residence who was deceased in a bedroom. The medical examiner later determined the victim died from fatal gunshot wounds. The victim was also identified as 31-year-old James E. Hamilton of Racine.
James Hamilton
Officers searched the bedroom and located a .357 revolver and a large standing safe. The firearm had three rounds fired, and the handgrip had blood on it, the complaint says. Inside the safe, "officers located an AR-15 style rifle, several varieties of controlled substances, including marijuana, psilocybin mushrooms, heroin, and LSD," the complaint says. There was also a bag inside the safe with more than $107,000 in cash -- and other pockets on the door of the safe that included even more money.
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When officers spoke with friends and acquaintances of Hamilton, they indicated he was involved in distributing controlled substances. Investigators believed a home invasion occurred and that "during the home invasion, the suspects and (Hamilton) exchanged fire, and (Hamilton) was killed," the complaint says.
According to the criminal complaint, a neighbor of Hamilton had a video system in the front window of his residence. It was aimed in the direction of Hamilton's home. It showed shortly before the shooting happened, a red truck was parked and surveilling Hamilton's residence for roughly an hour. Two people exited the red truck and walked to Hamilton's back door. A couple of minutes later, the complaint says both suspect were seen entering the red truck and leaving the area.
Investigators determined the red suspect truck was co-purchased by the brother of the defendant. They also later determined that the defendant's cellphone was in the area of the homicide -- and "reviewed reports from a traffic stop in Lake County, Illinois where (Martinez) had been arrested and located with a firearm," the complaint says.
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Charges were filed and an arrest warrant for Martinez were issued in February 2022. Online court records indicate he was only recently taken into custody.
Martinez made his initial appearance in Racine County court on Tuesday, June 6. Cash bond was set at $1 million.