Urbana man pleads guilty to fatal shooting of another man in 2022 | Courts-police-fire

URBANA — An Urbana man pleaded guilty to fatally shooting another man for fighting with his teenage daughter in 2022.

Daric S. Davis, 46, pleaded guilty Thursday to one count of second-degree murder in the Nov. 9 death of Taveon C. Davis, 24, of Urbana.

The plea, submitted before Champaign County Judge Roger Webber, states that Daric Davis mistakenly believed he was acting in self-defense when he knowingly shot Mr. Davis in the torso. The two men are not related.

In exchange for the guilty plea, the state agreed to dismiss four additional murder charges against Daric Davis at his upcoming sentencing hearing in July.

Assistant State's Attorney Scott Larson said Urbana police were dispatched to a home in the 1300 block of South Philo Road just after 7 p.m. on Nov. 9 for a report of a shooting.

At the scene, officers found Mr. Davis shot and administered life support, but he was pronounced dead after being transported to a local hospital. Police then interviewed several people who were inside the residence, including a woman and her three daughters.

The woman told police that Mr. Davis had been drinking and was arguing with her in the house, Larson said. When Mr. Davis began arguing with one of the teenage girls, the teenager slapped Mr. Davis, and Mr. Davis slapped her on the back, Larson said.

A younger teenage girl then called her father, Daric Davis, who came to the house. Daric Davis confronted Mr. Davis, witnesses saw a brief struggle ensue, then Daric said, “You don't touch my daughter,” before shooting the 24-year-old in the chest, said Larson.

Daric Davis remained on the run for months and investigators believed he had gone to another state before a U.S. marshal located him on Feb. 16, 2023, in an apartment in the 1600 block of Kiler Drive in Champaign.

Daric Davis faces probation or four to 15 years in prison when Webber hands down his sentence next month. He is eligible to serve 50 percent of his sentence.