Man accused of McHenry shooting spree found fit for trial

A 25-year-old Lake Villa man accused of firing a gun at homes and vehicles in McHenry during the early morning hours of March 31 has been found fit to stand trial.

On Thursday, McHenry County Judge Tiffany Davis said based on an evaluation conducted by doctors at Mathers Clinic and her observation of Nicholas C. Lopardo in her courtroom, she finds that he is fit to stand trial.

She also said she would enter a not guilty plea on all charges on his behalf.

“In the early morning hours of March 31, Lopardo was at a house party in the 3000 block of West Charlotte Avenue in McHenry where he was observed ‘drinking heavily’” while in the possession of a .357-caliber handgun.”

—  A motion filed by McHenry County prosecutors

Lopardo is charged with three counts of attempted first-degree murder, Class X felonies, and three counts of armed violence and aggravated discharge of a firearm at a police vehicle, also Class X felonies, among other charges, according to a 31-count indictment filed in the McHenry County courthouse.

Lopardo, who appeared in court with his attorney Robert Ritacca, remains held in the McHenry County jail without bond after a judge agreed with prosecutors who argued he “poses a real and present threat to the physical safety of any person ... and no combination of conditions of bail can reasonably assure the physical safety of any other person or persons.”

Authorities said in the early morning hours of March 31, Lopardo was at a house party in the 3000 block of West Charlotte Avenue in McHenry where he was observed “drinking heavily” while in the possession of a .357-caliber handgun, according to the motion.

“After making a sexual advance upon a female, which was rejected, [Lopardo] walked outside to the front yard area of the residence and fired multiple rounds in the yard before leaving the scene in a black Jaguar sedan,” according to prosecutors’ motion.

The following hours involved a short police chase, Lopardo allegedly abandoning his Jaguar and stealing Chevrolet Tahoe, which he is accused of using to ram a gate on McHenry County Conservation District property. Once inside the gate, he allegedly left the Tahoe and entered a building where he fired at least 10 gunshots, according to the motion.

He later, traveling northbound on Barreville Road, allegedly shot at and struck three occupied vehicles, one driven by a mail carrier, another a McHenry police vehicle and the third a McHenry County Sheriff’s Office vehicle.

Residents in a nearby neighborhood called in reports of gunfire and a man “walking around the neighborhood and attempting to gain access to homes. One video depicts [Lopardo] raising a gun and firing,” according to the petition.

Another call came in from a resident in the 1700 block of Cashel Lane who said someone was “in her basement where her husband stored multiple firearms and firearm ammunition.”

Lopardo is due back in court June 22.