A Macomb man was sentenced to 50 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections for the beating death of his cellmate in the McDonough County Jail nearly two years ago.
In August, during a retrial after the initial June trial ended in a mistrial, Timothy Smith, 42, was found guilty but mentally ill of first-degree murder in the Nov. 8, 2023, beating death of his cellmate, Darrell Hocker, 50.
“Due to the extraordinary level of depravity and disregard for human life, I agree with the prosecution’s recommendation of 50 years,” Judge Nigel Graham said during the Oct. 16 sentencing hearing. “Mr. Smith waited until the guards had completed rounds, turned off the lights and the television … he waited until darkness fell before beating Mr. Hocker to death. This shows planned and organized thought, it shows foresight in planning.”
Smith faced 20 to 60 years in prison, with 100% of the sentence to be served and a mandatory three years of supervision.
State’s Attorney Matt Kwacala said in his opening remarks that although Smith had no prior convictions, the unprovoked attack was intentional.
“This is the most brutal attack I’ve seen in my 25 years as an attorney. It didn’t just happen. It wasn’t a coincidence,” Kwacala said. “He murdered Darrell Hocker 20 minutes after lights out. It was a mega violent attack. He knew what he was doing.” [Edited for clarity and conciseness]
Smith chose not to attend any court proceedings and was tried and sentenced in absentia. His attorney, Scott McClintock of Monmouth, asked the court to consider Smith’s lack of prior delinquency and recent mental health decline.
“I ask the court to take the testimony of his sister and the psychiatrist, as well as the presentencing report regarding the full extent of his mental health into consideration,” McClintock said. “We ask for the minimum of 20 years.”
Written victim impact statements were entered into the record; no in-person statements were given at the Oct. 16 sentencing.
After the hearing, Hocker’s father, Roger, who attended all court proceedings with his wife, Janet, and daughter, Kathy, said the sentence was about what he expected.
“It was an appropriate sentence. I don’t know what else to say,” he said, fighting back tears. “We have some satisfaction, but it doesn’t bring Darrell back.”
Smith, 40 at the time, and Hocker were both held on domestic battery charges when arrested. On Oct. 21, Smith was moved from isolation to a cell with Hocker. Around 1 a.m. Nov. 8, two jailers had finished their rounds and left the area where the two men were housed in a pod with a common area and three individual cells.
After hearing noise and yelling, the jailers returned to find Smith standing over an unresponsive Hocker. Hocker was taken to McDonough District Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
An autopsy found Hocker died from blunt force trauma and injuries to the head and neck.
In October 2024, Hannah Mellentine, Hocker’s adult daughter, filed a 10-count civil suit in U.S. Federal Court for the Central Illinois District. The suit seeks damages exceeding $3.5 million for loss of life, conscious pain and suffering, additional compensatory and punitive damages, and demands a 12-person jury trial.
According to PACER, a status hearing is set for Jan. 8, 2026. Plaintiff attorneys must make expert witnesses available for deposition by March 6, 2026; defendants by May 15, 2026. Discovery closes June 15, 2026. A final pretrial conference is scheduled for Nov. 16, 2026, with jury trial set for Dec. 1, 2026.
The parties have exchanged initial disclosures, including more than 5,000 documents and over 100 hours of audio and video recordings.
