A Chicago police officer is facing charges months after he shoved an eighth grader outside his school, the child’s attorney said.
Craig Lancaster was charged with aggravated battery on Thursday in connection to an incident earlier this year involving JaQuwaun Williams at Walter Q. Gresham Elementary School. The officer was also relieved from his duties that afternoon, local news reported.
“Justice will prevail,” attorney Jordan Marsh, who represents the teen, told Atlanta Black Star during a phone interview on Thursday. “There will hopefully be some accountability, at least in the criminal justice system, for what was just simply an unprovoked violent assault by a 55-year-old sworn police officer against an innocent teenager.”
Williams’ legal guardian filed a lawsuit against Lancaster and the city of Chicago last month. During the morning of May 18, Williams, who was 14 at the time, finished playing a game of basketball with a friend and was walking into school before the bell rang.
Simultaneously, a teacher was standing in front of the door on school property talking to Officer Lancaster, identified as “her personal companion,” the filing says. Williams tried to walk inside the building when the physical encounter occurred.
“He just jammed his hand right into JaQuwaun’s throat… and he stepped towards [him]. Then the officer stares down JaQuwaun, and he says, ‘I’m going to beat the f**k out of you,” Marsh said, according to the teen’s account.
Security footage breaks down the moment Williams — sporting a black hoodie and green backpack — was struck by the officer, causing him to step backward. The teacher then intervenes and stands in between both of them. She walks towards Williams and directs him to the brick wall across the yard.
Seconds later, Lancaster and the teacher have a brief exchange before he starts walking toward the parking lot. It is important to note that the video has no audio, so what was said is unclear.
As Lancaster was leaving, he was stopped by a security guard. He flashed his police star and gun-holster, entered his car, and exited the premises. The court documents shed light on Lancaster’s alleged misconduct while working for the city police department.
“Lancaster has been accused of off-duty excessive force on seven occasions, and has received two 30-day suspensions for off-duty misconduct,” the lawsuit states. “The City of Chicago has been on notice for years of Lancaster’s penchant for off-duty violence and misconduct.”
In response to the allegations, Timothy Grace, the officer’s attorney, said that Williams “became a danger to the students and the staff,” a claim Marsh disagreed with, WLS reported. The surveillance footage does not show the teen acting in a threatening manner.
Williams, now in high school, has been impacted by the ordeal. Speaking to the Chicago Tribune, the teen said he was “shocked” and “embarrassed” after it happened.
“He’s affected in a lot of ways,” Marsh continued. “And I think this is the kind of thing, especially at this point in someone’s life — where they’re in such formative years — that it’s going to affect them for a long time.”
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