Prison sentence handed down for Bloomington hotel hold-up

Law and Justice Center
Court documents say Jarrod Williams, 42, pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery earlier this month. (WJBC file photo)

By HOI ABC

BLOOMINGTON – A Bloomington man, arrested for a hotel robbery last year, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison in McLean County Court.

Court documents say Jarrod Williams, 42, pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery earlier this month.

The charge alleged Williams took an undisclosed amount of cash on January 7 of 2020 from the Best Western Hotel at 604 1/2 IAA Drive. Williams reportedly told an employee there that he was armed with a weapon, but no one was hurt.

Police said they arrested Williams a few hours later in the 2000 block of Rainbow Avenue, but not before a police officer suffered a minor hand injury when Williams reportedly resisted arrest.

Police said they tased Williams when they took him into custody.

Blogs

Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all

By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year.  It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …

Is federal mobilization the answer?

By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city.   Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…

In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans

By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…

Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life

Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University.   We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk.  Going to work every day for some people means…