Isaiah Makuch convicted of murder in fatal 2023 drive-by shooting of Trey Sukey

ELYRIA — Lorain County Common Pleas Judge Melissa Kobasher on Friday rejected Isaiah Makuch's defense that he didn't know right from wrong when he fatally shot Trey Sukey five times as Sukey rode a motorcycle on Lake Avenue in Elyria Township on Oct. 24, 2023. Following two days of testimony, Kobasher ruled that Makuch, 26, of Elyria, knew the wrongfulness of his actions at the time of the crime despite his mental disease or defect. Sitting in the gallery of Kobasher's courtroom with a host of family members, friends and supporters, Sukey's mother, Autumn Smith, cried as Kobasher made her way through the verdict: Guilty of aggravated murder, murder, attempted murder, felonious assault, discharge of a firearm on or near a prohibited premises and improper handling of firearms in a motor vehicle, all felonies, as well as firearms and drive-by shooting specifications and misdemeanor aggravated menacing charges. Makuch, who had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, had no reaction as the verdicts were read. He had waived his right to a jury trial and asked Kobasher to decide the case. Defense attorney Jason Harless said he would reserve comment for sentencing. He had stipulated in court that Makuch shot and killed Sukey in a drive-by shooting, did not challenge the forensic evidence and argued only that his client's mental illness made him not responsible for his actions. Makuch was being held in the Lorain County Jail without bond ahead of sentencing. Diagnosed with schizophrenia and paranoid delusions, Makuch believed Sukey was a member of "the Illuminati," a secret society that was out to get him and was keeping him from being with the woman he loved, according to authorities and two psychologists who examined him following his arrest. The Lorain County Sheriff's Office said Makuch fired a 9 mm handgun out the window of his silver Honda Accord as he drove alongside Sukey's borrowed lime green Kawasaki motorcycle on Lake Avenue between Emerson Court and Sheriff Street the day of the murder. Sukey later died at a hospital. Elyria police and Lorain County Sheriff's deputies quickly identified Makuch as the shooter, tracked him down at a relative's house and arrested him. Makuch earlier in the day had pointed his gun at three other people on motorcycles in Amherst. He threatened but did not shoot at a couple on one motorcycle, then fired three shots at another rider — missing that person but damaging the motorcycle and their personal property. Assistant Lorain County Prosecutor Matt Kern and prosecution expert Bob Stinson argued that Makuch tried to cover up the crimes after he did them. They called that a sign that he knew what he did was wrong. Harless and defense expert Christopher Ray presented evidence that Makuch couldn't tell, and that even strong psychiatric medication he was ordered to take at a secure mental health facility didn't put a stop to his delusions. In an interview, Smith said she has sympathy for Makuch because he is mentally ill, "but you can't just randomly kill people." "It's not right. And then as the evidence showed, he had awareness of what he did and the consequences," she said. Smith said she hopes he gets life in prison without parole. "I don't want him to be in society ever again," she said. Smith said she also has sympathy for Makuch's family. "They didn't pull the trigger," she said. Sydney Lester said Friday's verdict won't bring her older brother back. "At the end of the day, Trey's not here. Trey's gone," taken from his family by an unforeseen act of violence because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, she said. "It can be such a hateful world we have," Lester said. Smith praised the Prosecutor's Office for its hard work. She also thanked the larger community for supporting her and her family in the last 2½ years since her son's murder. Sukey's family described him as easygoing and quiet, a smart listener who was always present in the moment, and a man of faith. He "loved loving life," his mother said, adding that she knows life will never be normal again. "Wer'e not the same people. We're missing a part of us. But we're just going to try get through the day-to-day," she said. Lester "reminds me all the time we have to live for Trey, because that's what he would want us to do." Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com.