Two brothers threw themselves across an Ohio courtroom, wrestling with security as they laid into the man convicted of killing their mother.
Williams had admitted to killing Elizabeth Pledger, running her off the road and shooting her in what prosecutors described as a meticulously planned murder back in 2017.
Pledger’s family were preparing to give an impact statement during Williams’s sentencing hearing, when one of her two sons, Anthony Dees, launched himself across the courtroom table at Williams.
As Williams leaps backward, security staff briefly pin Dees to the table, but he scrambles free as they turn their attention to the other brother, Jerome Steward, who is now also trying to get to Williams.
Hampered by security, but not under control, both brothers manage to get within range of Williams, dragging him to the floor and raining down blows on him as they struggle to break free of security.
Both were eventually subdued.
Mahoning County Sheriff Jerry Greene told CNN officers used a stun gun on Jerome Stuart Dees.
They will now miss the sentencing hearing of their mother’s killer—because their own sentencing hearing is set for the same day.
The brothers were both taken to Mahoning County Jail, and are scheduled to appear in court on July 15, after their arraignment hearing on July 12 was postponed due to a bomb threat.
“He killed my mother, man,” Jerome Stuart Dees told officers as he was being handcuffed. “That was my mama, she took care of me, bro.”
He had initially admitted to police that he killed Pledger during one morning rush hour in June 2017.
According to the prosecution, he caused her to crash, before shooting her on the sidewalk. The prosecution said it was a meticulously planned murder.
“He went in detail about how he lied in wait and he did this,” attorney Dawn Cantalamessa said, according to WKBN. He had even planned what to wear, said the prosecution.
“He made a statement initially that he was trying to save one bullet for himself as well or one bullet to point at the police, but he ended up using it all,” Cantalamessa said.
He could face life in prison without parole, according to the news outlet.