February 26, 2024

 JOLIET— Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow announces that Shanquilla Garvey, 30, of Joliet, was sentenced Friday to 35 years in prison in the death of her 8-month-old daughter Cherish in 2017. Garvey pled guilty to First Degree Murder (a Class X felony) before Circuit Judge Daniel Rippy. 

On December 20, 2017, Garvey was living at the Bel-Air Motel in Joliet with Cherish and two of her other children. Garvey wanted Cherish to stop crying and threw her into a dresser, picked her up, shook her, and threw her onto the ground of the motel room. Cherish then became unresponsive, and Garvey called 911. The baby was rushed by ambulance to Ascension Saint Joseph Hospital in Joliet, and then airlifted to Advocate Children’s Hospital in Oak Lawn. The baby suffered two skull fractures, bleeding on the brain and liver laceration. Cherish died from blunt force trauma four days later, on Christmas Eve, in the hospital’s intensive care unit. 

“For a mother to beat her own baby to death is incomprehensible,” Glasgow said. “Cherish was taken from this earth simply because Shanquilla Garvey wanted her to stop crying. This precious baby girl’s last experience was one of trauma and suffering, something no prison sentence can ever undo.” 

The sentence will be served at 100 percent. Garvey will receive 2377 days credit and will also serve three years mandatory supervised release. 

Glasgow thanked Assistant State’s Attorneys Deborah Mills and Erin Krone, Victim Witness Advocate Mallory Magee, Legal Secretary Nancy Nelson, Joliet Police Department Detectives Dave Jackson and Aaron Bandy, and retired Joliet Police Department Detective Shawn Filipiak for their dedication and commitment in this matter. Glasgow also commended Will County 

Children’s Advocacy Center Assistant Director Jaclyn Lundquist for the victim sensitive interview she performed. 

The CAC was established by Glasgow in 1995 to offer services and advocacy to children who are victims of sexual abuse and severe physical abuse. Forensic interviews of children are conducted at the CAC after there has been a report to law enforcement or DCFS of severe physical abuse, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, child pornography, neglect, or exposure to violence. The CAC uses a collaborative approach to taking a child’s statement with multi-disciplinary team members that include law enforcement, mental health professionals, prosecution, and child protective services (DCFS), with the child telling their story once to a trained forensic interviewer who asks the questions in a non-leading manner in a way that does not re-traumatize the child. This protects the integrity of the information gathered and allows prosecutors and investigators to thoroughly assess possible criminal offenses that may have been committed. 

Annually, the Will County CAC serves more than 700 children who have endured physical and sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, child pornography, neglect, and exposure to violence.