JEFFERSON COUNTY — A 23-year-old Mt. Vernon man was returned Thursday to the Jefferson County Jail from the Illinois Department of Corrections so he can be retried on a 2019 case charging him with gun related offenses.

Jamaro Kemmerling was sentenced three years ago to 20 years in prison after a Jefferson County jury found him guilty on two Class X charges for armed violence, Class 2 felony charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm with a prior conviction, and possession of a converted firearm, along with two Class 4 felony charges for aggravated fleeing police.

Those charges were ultimately reversed by the Fifth Appellate Court who ruled “the trial judge abused his discretion when he improperly allowed the admission of other-crimes evidence” to be presented to the Jefferson County jury.

Kemmerling’s arrest came after a brief police pursuit on the south side of Mt. Vernon where he reportedly got his vehicle stuck in a yard.

He then allegedly fled on foot a short distance before Mt. Vernon officers surrounded him and successfully took him into custody.

A search of his vehicle revealed a firearm, which combined with his criminal history led to Class X charges for armed violence, as well as Class 2 felony charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm with a prior conviction and possession of a converted firearm.

The jury deliberated for two hours before arriving at their verdict of guilty on all counts.

He’s scheduled for a December 13 status hearing in the retrial case. His bond is again set at $250,000.