The new mayor of a village in a Chicago suburb unleashed a firestorm after it has emerged that she hired a registered child sex offender who worked on her marketing campaign to be the town’s code enforcement officer – a role that requires him to investigate cross-check inside of houses and companies.
Trustees within the Village of Dolton – a neighborhood of 23,000 located simply south of Chicago – say they are appalled that Mayor Tiffany Henyard presented Lavelle Redmond a municipal process with out consulting them.
Despite going through backlash from village leaders and citizens, Heynard has defended her hiring resolution, pronouncing she believes in ‘2nd possibilities’ for ex-convicts who had repaid their debts to society.
Tiffany Heynard, the first feminine and youngest mayor of Dolton, Illinois, is under fireplace for hiring her former campaign employee Lavelle Redmond (pictured together, left) as a code enforcement officer. The 46-year-old is a registered child sex offender
When faced in his automotive, Redmond referred to his legal history as his ‘early life background over 30 years in the past’
Redmond, 46, served 24 years in jail after pleading guilty to two counts of irritated felony sexual attack with a weapon stemming from a gang rape that came about in 1991, as Fox 32 Chicago first reported.
According to reporting at the time, the then-16-year-old Redmond and three others kidnapped and sexually assaulted two woman, ages Thirteen and 14.
At age 17, Redmond was once sentenced to 50 years in prison but was paroled in 2016 and required to sign up as a sex offender.
Heynard, a Democrat, used to be sworn in as mayor in May, changing into the first lady and the youngest individual to occupy that submit in Dolton’s 128-year historical past.
Fox 32 reported that all over Heynard’s a hit run for workplace, Redmond worked on her marketing campaign; the 2 were pictured posing in combination at an match.
On September 20, Redmond used to be hired as a code enforcement officer, which draws an annual wage of greater than $31,200.
When he used to be faced about his criminal historical past via a reporter, Redmond described it as his ‘youth background over 30 years in the past.’
Heynard, who was once sworn in as mayor in May, defended her hiring choice, pronouncing she believes in ‘2nd probabilities.’ Village trustees have lashed out on the mayor
Several local residents told the news outlet they'd be terrified if Redmond have been to show up on their doorstep to accomplish an inspection.
Village trustees mentioned Redmond was employed immediately by way of the mayor and her village administrator, Dorothy Brown-Cook, with none input from them.
In the midst of the talk, the mayor has refused to backtrack and expressed fortify for Redmond.
‘I and the Village of Dolton take the safety of our residents very critical [sic], and we'd by no means put our citizens in jeopardy,’ Heynard stated in a statement.
‘In regard to the topic of the worker who is the subject of latest information stories, know that the incident referred to, happened nearly 30 yeas in the past and they paid their debt to society. We believe that a person may also be rehabilitated, and we believe in second probabilities.’
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