Man accused of threatening to shoot former Mayor Lightfoot appears in court
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A Michigan man accused of threatening to shoot former Mayor Lori Lightfoot made a brief court appearance on Thursday.
William Kohles was arrested last December in Grand Rapids, charged with threatening a public official. Cook County prosecutors said he sent a message through a portal on the former mayor's official website in September, threatening to shoot her if she didn't reduce crime in Chicago.
"I have a bullet with your name on it. I guarantee it will go straight through your m***********g head," he wrote, according to court documents. "I will turn around and shoot your f*****g black ass myself."
Both Kohles and Lightfoot were at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse on Thursday for a brief hearing to discuss routine scheduling matters.
"I attended today's hearing as I take this matter with grave seriousness. The defendant is alleged to have issued a death threat against me that included the repeated use of derogatory and offensive language. The alleged threat included use of the N-word, other racially offensive terms and repeated threats to 'put a bullet in my head,'" Lightfoot said in a statement after the hearing.
In her statement, Lightfoot also suggested that she is entitled to continued police protection after leaving office in May. According to published reports, her security detail was dramatically reduced after she left office.
"We all know that criticism from the public and others comes with the job of being an elected official. But what doesn't come with the job, and what we must never accept, are threats of death or bodily harm. On behalf of my family and myself, I have to take these threats seriously and ensure I have the protection to which I am entitled, given the seriousness of the current threat environment," Lightfoot said.
Kohles did not speak to reporters about the case.