Mother of Chicago woman who died on LSD speaks out
CHICAGO (FOX 32 News) - The family of the Chicago woman who was chased onto Lake Shore Drive and then struck by a truck is speaking out after murder charges were filed Friday.
Pamela Johnson was walking with her boyfriend in the Gold Coast when police say a group of young men tried to rob them.
Police released surveillance pictures of the suspects earlier this week, but the family of the suspects say police have it all wrong.
“All of us took our kids in on our own. We wanted their names cleared,” one parent said.
The parents of the six young men are vigorously defending their children.
“All of us, as children, did things as we were growing up...so we can't say every kid is good, but we know our child is not one who is capable of murder or sticking anyone up,” a parent said.
But one of them, 18-year-old Semaj Waters, is charged with felony murder, mob action and attempted armed robbery. His family, though, questions their case.
“Stop trying to slander our kids with all this bull. If you got what you say you've got, then let us see so we can end it,” a parent said.
And they believe the motive behind the arrest is profiling.
“We are dealing with a lot of situations that our kid had nothing to do with...but just because they were young black kids running, then they were the ones to blame for the young woman's tragedy,” a parent said.
Even one of the teens who turned himself in says the group did nothing wrong.
“Don’t nobody know what we went through. We sat with that lady until the ambulance came...and watched them trying to help that lady,” the teen said.
Late Friday night, the family of Semaj Water's released a statement saying: "Chicagoans should find it interesting that Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez can hastily approved felony murder charges within hours of seeing a photo of individuals in a public setting and the statement from a drunken boyfriend...who couldn't possibly have picked out Mr. Waters in a line up without suggestive help but would not file charges to a white police officer seen clearly on video pumping 16 bullets into a black defenseless boy... in over a year.”