White Men Charged With Attempted Murder, Hate Crimes In Illinois

Police Lights — Source: Radio ONE / General

On Monday, three men were arrested in Paris, Illinois, over a reported “disturbance involving a firearm” that Paris police responded to earlier this month. On Tuesday, two of the men received attempted murder and hate crime charges, among other charges, because they’re accused of violently targeting Black victims, and using racial slurs while doing so.

According to WCIA, 29-year-old Jordan J. Kollman and 25-year-old Jesse L. Kollman appeared in court for a hearing on Tuesday. The hearing resulted in Jesse being charged with attempted first-degree murder and committing a hate crime, which are a Class X felony and Class 3 felony, respectively. Jordan received the same charges, in addition to a charge aggravated discharge of a firearm, a Class 1 felony, and unlawful possession of weapons by felon, Class 2 felony.

The third man, Jayden A. Reynolds, who police said was arrested for “mob action,” has not yet been charged with a crime, and is scheduled to appear in court on April 20.

Here’s a quick rundown on how we got here, via WCIA:

The charges stem from a shooting that happened in the evening hours of Friday, April 3. WCIA previously reported that officers with the Paris Police Department responded to White Oaks Park after receiving several 911 calls about a “disturbance involving a firearm.” When they arrived on the scene, police found an injured male subject.

New details, shared in court on Tuesday, reveal more information about what may have happened that night.

Prosecutors said Jaleel Jones, a Danville alderman, and two other men — all Black men — were fishing in Paris around 10:45 p.m. when a white pickup truck pulled up with the Kollmans — both white men. Reynolds was with them as well.

Evidence presented in court indicates that the Kollmans and Reynolds had been drinking, and when they got out of the car, they surrounded the three victims and were acting aggressively. All three of the accused were allegedly using racial slurs. The victims said they would leave, but then Jordan pulled a 12 gauge shotgun from the truck, prosecutors said.

The gun had been purchased by Reynolds, but was given to the Kollmans in exchange for a PS5.

The state said Jordan pointed the shotgun in the air, fired and then pointed the gun at one of the victims. Prosecutors said he threatened to “blow [the victim’s] head off.” Documents obtained from the Edgar County Circuit Clerk indicate that Jordan “discharged multiple rounds… at or in the vicinity” of the victims.

It all sounds like a classic American tale of Black people trying their best to mind their own business, and hateful white people perceiving them as threats who simply don’t belong, all the same.

In this instance, though, not all of the victims were willing to be victimized so easily. According to court records, one of the Black men who were allegedly threatened with a shotgun pulled out a gun of his own, which he carried legally, and shot Jordan three times. The armed victim has not been charged with a crime, court records show.

So, the injured man police found at the scene was Jordan, not any of his alleged victims. According to prosecutors, Jesse helped escalate the situation by egging Jordan on and encouraging him to bring his shotgun closer to the victims. Both men were denied pretrial release on Tuesday and are due back in court for a preliminary hearing on April 24.

Besides the Paris Police Department, the Edgar County State’s Attorney’s Office, Illinois State Police Zone 5 Investigations, Illinois State Conservation Police, Terre Haute Police Department, U.S. Marshals Service, Paris Fire Department, and Horizon Health all took part in the investigation.

This is what taking white supremacy seriously looks like, good people. Hopefully, all guilty parties are convicted and put somewhere far away from the people they threaten and endanger. And may all of their ilk receive similar fates.

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