An activist has been charged with resisting arrest after he was involved in a heated confrontation with Dolton Village Trustee Andrew Holmes on Monday night, an incident that was captured on video.
Jedidiah Brown was released on Tuesday after being charged with a misdemeanor following the confrontation, which took place during the Dolton Village Board’s meeting on Monday.
In the video, Brown is seen confronting Holmes over allegations that he sexually assaulted a former assistant of Dolton Mayor Tiffany Henyard.
“You’re going to answer, and you’re going to answer me,” he said.
Brown then moved toward Holmes, who stood up from his seat and angrily confronted Brown. Trustees and police quickly stepped between the men, but the heated argument continued, ending only when Brown was escorted to the back of the room and taken into custody.
Brown was taken to an area hospital after complaining of chest pains, but was released back into police custody. He was released on Tuesday afternoon.
He told reporters that in addition to the misdemeanor charge, Holmes had filed a restraining order against him.
Holmes is facing a lawsuit from Fenia Dukes, who alleged that he sexually assaulted her on an official trip to Las Vegas in 2023. She alleges that Henyard covered up the assault, and named her as part of the lawsuit.
According to the suit, Dukes said she felt disoriented shortly after having dinner and walking down the Strip with Holmes. She said she eventually blacked out.
Holmes has not responded to requests for comment, and has been faced with calls for his resignation from multiple village trustees and Dolton residents. Well known as a community activist, Holmes’ employment was terminated by Chicago Survivors after the lawsuit was filed.
“Our mission is to provide crime victim services to family members of homicide victims, so our relationships with those families and our community is paramount. Without compromise, there needs to be strong mutual trust and an assumed high level of safety for the adults and children we serve. For those reasons, we terminated his employment in April upon learning of the serious allegations,” the group said in a statement.
Residents calling for Holmes’ resignation said they asked Brown to intervene on their behalf, and rallied outside the jail where he was being held following his arrest Monday.
“We want to be here for support. He’s not from Dolton, but he’s put his life on hold to come here and help up,” resident Mary Avant said.