Illinois lawmaker can’t stay quiet any longer about the wrongfully accused

Posted on February 25, 2022
La Shawn Ford
State Rep. La Shawn Ford (D-Chicago). (Photo courtesy www.ilga.gov)

By Dave Dahl

SPRINGFIELD – A Black teenager from Waukegan – Martell Williams, 15 – was reportedly detained for two days after police allegedly squeezed a false confession out of him for a shooting. The story is that officers bribed him with food from McDonald’s. And it led to a lengthy speech Wednesday on the floor of the Illinois House.

“When there is an injustice playing out” such as this one, said State Rep. La Shawn Ford (D-Chicago), “we must use it as a teachable moment to take positive action to change our ways.”

Are these just a few bad apples mistreating young Blacks?

“Whether we are police, teachers, or prosecutors, we should have positive action in our duties,” said Ford, who is Black, in an interview later in the day. “I think that having a rush to judgment hurts society as a whole.”

Ford says back in the day he was hassled by cops – white and Black.

Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected]

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