Governor Deletes Photo of Arrested Peacekeeper

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has removed a photo of himself with a man who was part of a community peacekeeping initiative after that individual was arrested in connection with a fatal robbery.

This initiative, supported by progressive Mayor Brandon Johnson, aims to empower local activists to mediate disputes and diminish reliance on police, ultimately seeking to cut down crime in the area. On September 5th, Pritzker shared a video on Facebook from his visit to meet members of this peacekeeping group.

Among those he met was Kellen McMiller, who reportedly participated in a violent $700,000 heist at a Louis Vuitton store on Michigan Street. Following this incident, McMiller was charged with murder related to a car crash that resulted in a man’s death.

According to CWBCHICAGO, after McMiller’s arrest, the governor’s office went back to update press materials and removed references to him. The governor had referred to such peacekeeping efforts as “trustworthy messengers of the community,” emphasizing the necessity of more community violence prevention instead of traditional law enforcement. Yet, the circumstances have clearly shifted now.

Fox 32 in Chicago reported that a spokesman for Pritzker stated the governor did not personally know McMiller and took down images of the two together from the state’s website after learning about the charges against him.

Additionally, it’s come to light that McMiller has prior arrests across four states, although the specific details regarding those incidents remain unclear.