In Memoriam: Dennis Williams
Dennis Williams was freed from his wrongful imprisonment on Illinois’ death row in 1996. In March of 2003, not even 6 years after his exoneration, he died of a brain aneurysm. His story follows.
Dennis Williams spent 18 years in jail, 14 of them on death row, for a crime he did not commit. He spent more time on death row than any other inmate in the United States to walk out of death row alive.
Dennis was born in the Mississippi delta. His family moved to Ford Heights, Chicago when he was young. At the time of his arrest, he had graduated high school and was planning a career in auto mechanics.
Exonerated: Darby Tillis
In 1977, two men were murdered at a hot dog stand in the Uptown neighborhood in Chicago, IL. I heard rumors that police were looking for me. I voluntarily went to the police station to inquire about these rumors. A woman named Phyllis Santini had gone to the police with a story implicating Perry Cobb and me. When I got to the police station, I was offered a $5,000 reward to sign a false statement against 2 men that they were holding: Perry Cobb and Earl Grant. I did know anything about the crime, so I refused to sign the statement. When I refused, they threatened me with the death penalty. I was an easy target because I am black and at that time I was a pimp and a hustler. However, I was not a murderer.
