Illinois town meeting ends in brawl over ‘worst mayor in America’ – Washington Examiner

Annabella RosciglioneJanuary 29, 2025

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A⁣ heated‌ town hall‍ meeting in Thornton,Illinois,descended into chaos when Mayor Tiffany Henyard,often dubbed “the worst mayor in America,”⁣ was confronted by resident Jedidiah Brown during public comments. Following an aggressive speech from Brown, which ⁣included insults ‍directed at Henyard,‌ a physical altercation erupted as Henyard’s supporters, including her boyfriend, Kamal Woods, confronted him. The situation escalated into a brawl involving multiple individuals,⁢ leading to intervention from security.

Mayor Henyard, who has faced numerous controversies during ⁤her tenure—including accusations of embezzlement and retaliation ‌against a sexual assault victim—was caught in the melee, losing a shoe in the process.⁣ Additionally, the⁢ town board placed Woods and ‌another employee on administrative leave amid ongoing investigations into their work performance. Recently, Henyard’s tenure ‍faced further scrutiny when ⁢former chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot was hired to investigate Henyard’s alleged misuse of funds. Despite thes challenges, Henyard’s efforts to continue her political career were thwarted ⁤when she ⁣lost her ‍nomination for ‌the supervisor position.

Illinois town meeting ends in brawl as ‘worst mayor in America’ makes an appearance

A town hall meeting ended in a fight after Dolton, Illinois Mayor Tiffany Henyard, the “worst mayor in America,” appeared at the meeting in Thorton, where she serves as supervisor.

The brawl began following the public comments portion of the meeting when resident Jedidiah Brown made a lengthy, aggressive speech directed at Henyard. His statement ended with him calling Henyard a “b****.”

Before Brown could return to his seat, supporters of Henyard, including Henyard’s boyfriend Kamal Woods, confronted Brown, and the fight broke out, according to CBS News.

BREAKING NEWS—Fight breaks out at Thornton Township meeting. Supervisor Henyard’s boyfriend gets altercation with someone speaking during public comments. The person called the Supervisor a (expletive) moments before. Full report at 10pm @cbschicago pic.twitter.com/qC1l8De2dJ

— Jermont Terry (@JermontTerry) January 29, 2025

Several men then began the brawl, with punches being thrown and some kicking. Security then tried separating them.

Henyard herself entered the situation at one point, but it is unclear if she was entering the fight or trying to separate the men. She did, however, lose a shoe and was thrown to the ground after entering the brawl.

Woods, Henyard’s boyfriend, was also at the center of the Thornton Township Board of Trustees’ agenda as trustee Stephanie Wiedeman made a motion to put Woods and another employee, William Moore, on administrative leave. Henyard hired Woods to run the town’s youth program, but many board members and some community members have questioned Woods and Moore’s work.

The board did wind up placing Woods and Moore on paid leave immediately as investigations into their positions began.

Henyard’s time as mayor has been riddled with controversy. She has been accused of embezzling taxpayer funds, retaliating against a victim of sexual assault, and has been called the “worst mayor in America.” Henyard, a Democrat, describes herself as a “Super Mayor.”

Former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot was hired last year by the town as the “special investigator” in charge of probing Henyard’s spending habits. Lightfoot’s investigation revealed thousands of dollars spent on the village’s credit cards, including nine domestic trips, $43,000 spent on Amazon in one day, $8,000 in purchases at Wayfair, and $2,000 spent at Best Buy.

Last month, she lost her nomination bid to retain her position as Thornton Township supervisor. The Democratic Party Caucus voted against Henyard’s nomination because she did not have a full slate of leaders on her ticket. Illinois state Sen. Napoleon Harris will be the Democratic nominee in the race.