EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – An 18-year-old from Granite City, Illinois, was sentenced Monday for the 2020 murder of a Madison teenager.
Nicholas Rickman III was convicted in Oct. 2022 of first-degree murder and armed robbery. Prosecutors convinced jurors Rickman was one of two people who shot and killed Sean Williams.
The Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office said Rickman’s co-defendant, 19-year-old Deandre Richardson, previously pleaded guilty to first-degree murder.
Prosecutors told jurors that Rickman and Williams were friends, but Rickman lured Williams to a home in the 2500 block of Madison Avenue in order to rob him. Williams was fatally wounded during the robbery.
In the aftermath of the murder, Rickman attempted to hide from police by turning off his cellphone and shaving his head, prosecutors said.
Rickman, who was 16 at the time of the murder, faced up to 40 years in state prison. A Madison County judge imposed a 32-year sentence.
