Protestors Show Up At Joliet City Council Meeting And Civil Unrest On West Side

Protestors at Joliet City Hall during the council meeting on Tuesday night. One man wanted to speak with Northern District of Illinois U.S. Attorney John Lausch to discuss why federal hate crime charges haven’t been filed against former Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke in the killing of Laquan McDonald. Van Dyke is set to be released from prison tomorrow after serving under half of an 81-month sentence for the murder of the 17-year-old McDonald in 2014.  Protestors chanting “No Justice, No Peace” in the council chambers.  They demanded Joliet City Council take a vote to support their efforts. Extra police officers were posted at Joliet City Hall to make sure everyone could exit the building safely.

Meanwhile, WJOL listeners reporting civil unrest in two neighborhood on the west side of Joliet as they saw 30 to 40 people marching through the streets, believing that one of the homes to be where Lausch lives. Lausch is a native of Joliet but unclear if he lives here.

Meanwhile, a relative or friend of Eric Lurry’s widow spoke about the stalled progress in her husband’s case.

Thirty-seven-year old Eric Lurry died of a drug overdose several hours after he was arrested in January 2020. While he was in Joliet police custody, and sitting in the back seat of a police car, Lurry ingested a fatal amount of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine according to Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow. Lurry died several hours after the arrest. No arrests made in the Lurry case.