ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL: VERMILION COUNTY MAN SENTENCED TO 60 YEARS IN PRISON IN MURDER OF 2-YEAR-OLD DANVILLE TODDLER

ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL: VERMILION COUNTY MAN SENTENCED TO 60 YEARS IN PRISON IN MURDER OF 2-YEAR-OLD DANVILLE TODDLER

March 23, 2026

Chicago - Attorney General Kwame Raoul today announced that a Danville, Illinois man was sentenced to 60 years in prison for the 2022 death of a 2-year-old toddler.

In January, a Vermilion County jury found Dantrail Johnson, 32, guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Cali Sago, 2, also from Danville. Vermilion County Court Judge Mark Goodwin today sentenced Johnson to 60 years in prison for one count of first-degree murder.

"While this sentence in no way makes up for the loss that Cali Sago's family has experienced, it is my hope that it provides some healing and relief," Raoul said. "I would like to thank the Vermilion County State's Attorney's Office for their continued partnership in protecting residents and holding those who commit violent crimes accountable."

According to Raoul, Johnson was watching Cali Sago on the evening of Aug. 11, 2022 while Cali's mother was at work. At approximately 8:38 p.m. that evening, officers from the Danville Police Department and paramedics were dispatched to Cali's home in the 1200 block of Garden Drive in Danville after receiving a 911 call from Johnson stating that Cali was unresponsive. Cali was immediately taken to a local hospital and was ultimately airlifted to a pediatric unit in Peoria, Illinois, where she passed away on Sept. 11, 2022. The Peoria County Coroner's Office conducted a postmortem examination of Cali and noted signs of violent abuse, including evidence of brain hemorrhaging, internal organ damage and rib fractures. The coroner's report listed Cali's cause of death as blunt force trauma due to physical abuse.

The Attorney General's office prosecuted the case with Vermilion County State's Attorney Jacqueline M. Lacy's office.

"There is no sentence that could undo the unimaginably brutal murder of this innocent child, but I believe the court's decision to impose the maximum sentence of 60 years ensures this defendant is held accountable and will not be able to harm another vulnerable victim," Lacy said. "I am grateful for the partnership of the Attorney General and his assistants in securing this outcome."

Bureau Chief Michael Falagario and Supervising Attorney Daniel Weiler prosecuted the case for Raoul's Criminal Prosecutions and Trials Assistance Bureau, along with Assistant State's Attorney Thomas O'Connor from the Vermilion County State's Attorney's Office.