Man told police he fatally shot his wife outside metro-east motel, prosecutor says
A St. Clair County man told police he fatally shot his wife inside a car in the parking lot of the Super 8 motel in Fairview Heights, a prosecutor said in a detention hearing Wednesday.
Clifton Davis III, 48, faces first-degree murder and aggravated unlawful use of a firearm in connection with the shooting of Vanessa Cherry, 34, of East St. Louis, on Nov. 9 at the motel at 45 Ludwig Drive.
Associate Judge Sara L. Rice ruled that Davis poses a “real threat” to the community, and she ordered that he remain in the St. Clair County Jail until his trial.
Assistant State’s Attorney Martin Plute told Rice that Davis admitted to police that he shot Cherry, and Rice noted this admission in making her ruling.
Plute, who did not reveal a motive, said Cherry suffered five gunshot wounds from a .357-caliber handgun.
Police were able to recover the weapon after speaking to Davis, who was arrested 100 yards away from the crime scene shortly after the shooting, Plute said.
A witness positively identified Davis as a man leaving the scene, Plute said.
“Witnesses heard gunshots and saw multiple flashes inside the victim’s vehicle and the man had been observed leaving the scene,” Fairview Heights Police Chief Steve Johnson said in a news release.
Cherry was pronounced deceased at the scene.
Davis’ last-known address was on 74th Street in East St. Louis, but he was living at the motel, Johnson said.
St. Clair County Public Defender Cathy MacElroy, who represented Davis in the hearing, told Rice that Davis had a full-time job before he was arrested and previously had only been charged with traffic offenses.
In her request to have Davis released before his trial, MacElroy said Davis has six children.
Illinois ended its cash bail system on Sept. 18. Since then, Illinois judges have been conducting detention hearings to determine whether someone charged with serious offenses should remain in jail before their trial.
