Joliet man charged with 12 counts of murder for 2021 Halloween mass shooting

A Joliet man is charged with 18 felony counts, including first-degree murder, in connection with the mass shooting that killed three people and wounded 10 others at a 2021 Halloween party in Joliet Township.

David A. Grijalva, 23, of Joliet was arrested without incident Thursday at his work place in Channahon by Will County sheriff’s police and the U.S. Marshals Service, according to a news release from Sheriff Mike Kelly’s office.

Grijalva is charged with 12 counts of first-degree murder, five counts of aggravated battery with a firearm and one count of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, according to the sheriff’s office.

About 12:45 a.m. Oct. 31, 2021, dozens of gunshots were fired into a crowd gathered at a Halloween party located near East Jackson Street and Walnut Street in Joliet Township.

The shooters stood from an elevated position over the crowd as they began to fire indiscriminately, police said, and nearby Will County sheriff’s deputies heard the shots and immediately responded to the area.

The party was attended by about 200 people dressed in costumes who fled from the area as shots continued to be fired and deputies began arriving on scene.

Deputies immediately began performing life-saving measures on party-goers and triaging those injured from gunfire and from being trampled.

Holly Mathews and Jonathan Ceballos, who were not the intended targets, were pronounced dead on scene, police said.

The intended target, Sergio Hernandez, was paralyzed in the shooting and succumbed to his injuries nearly a year later, police said.

Grijalva was transported to the Will County Adult Detention Facility, where he will be housed pending his next court appearance. He is the fourth person charged in the shooting.

In January 2022, Joskar S. Ramos, now age 20, of Joliet, Jeremy Lopez, now age 22, of Joliet, and Thomas Lopez, now age 23, of Joliet were all charged in connection to the shooting.