URBANA — A Champaign man who participated in the murder of a man in 2008 has been sentenced to 40 years in prison.

In June, a Champaign County jury convicted Demarco Taylor, 20, who listed an address in the 600 block of East Bradley Avenue, of the first-degree murder of James Ellis.

Ellis, 34, was fatally shot Dec. 19, 2008, inside a garage made into an apartment at a home on Joanne Lane in Champaign. His young children and wife were present.

Assistant State's Attorney Dan Clifton said although Taylor was not the shooter, he was present inside the residence when Ellis was killed.

Prosecutors believe Ellis' stepson, Tyrone Franklin Jr., 19, of Urbana, was the gunman. His case and that of another co-defendant, Jonathan Brumfield, 22, of Champaign, remain unresolved. Both have court appearances scheduled for next week.

Another man, Laniel Bradley, 22, of Urbana, pleaded guilty in March to unlawful sale or gift of a firearm near a school for supplying Franklin with the gun. He was sentenced to four years in prison and the murder charges were dismissed.

Clifton asked Judge Harry Clem to impose the maximum sentence of 60 years on Taylor, while Taylor's attorney, Jim Dedman of Urbana, sought a lesser sentence, arguing that the maximum should be reserved for the shooter.

Taylor will have to serve 100 percent of the sentence. He's been in custody about a year.

It was a tip to Crimestoppers that helped Champaign police make the arrests some 19 months after the fatal shooting.

Clifton said Taylor had a juvenile adjudication for resisting a peace officer, and received first-offender probation for possession of a controlled substance in 2010.