Who Is Kevin Willing?

How much can you truly know about the background of people you come into contact with each and every day? Do you ever wonder where they came from, or what they've done in the past? Take, for example the case of Kevin Willing, a man who, last I knew, was living in the Chicago Suburbs and worked for a comapany called Traffic Control & Protection. How many co-workers, friends, and customers of the company know that when they deal with Kevin Willing they are in the presence of a man who brutally beat to death a 4 year old child?

Back in 1993, Willing was at home babysitting his fiance's two children when Samantha wet her bed. Willing began to beat the child, who eventually died from the injuries she sustained. In court, the defense managed to convince the jury that Willing never intended to hurt the child seriously and that her injuries were accidental (perhaps Kevin is unable to control his fists). Rather than first degree murder, he was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to a pathetic 10 years, of which he served three.

Now he is free and living a normal life. He comes and goes to work. He gets together with family. He can enjoy a summer afternoon. All of these are things he denied to Samantha and her family for ever.

Recently I was told by a friend that our society has "courts of law, not courts of justice," and that is certainly true. Kevin escaped justice, serving only a few years for beating the life out of a defenseless child. He was ordered to pay restitution to his former fiance and some other family members, but the court allowed him a very generous payment plan in which he made periodic installments of less than $30 until the balance was paid. Talk about adding insult to injury; the court ensured that for several years the family would be reminded of their loss and the lack of justice in the form of checks (some members share of each payment was less than $5).

The defense attorneys seem rather proud of their role in denying justice to a dead child. They have reprinted news articles of the case on their website: here, and here.

During the trial Kevin was portrayed as stressed by financial obligations of his new wife and kids, the defense brought in psychologists who testified that Kevin Willing was "mentally slow" based on an evaluation when he applied to be a St.Charles, IL police officer. So, if you are stressed and an idiot you are allowed to kill someone! Perhaps that's how Ted Kennedy got away with it.

Samantha would be a young woman today. Perhaps in college, perhaps married. We will never know, because all the potential she posessed was robbed from her and those who loved her by Kevin Willing. Kevin Willing, who today is free to marry, to raise children even; children who are in danger of being treated by their father the way he treated an innocent child more than a decade ago. I guess we can only pray that Kevin Willing is not stressed the next time he is around children - as for the mentally slow part- I doubt there's much hope.

Meanwhile, the family has been through hell; on the anniversary of every birthday they feel their loss. On the anniversary of her death, they relive the pain and recall how they were denied justice. For them there was no first day of school, no visits to the zoo, no school photos, no park district soccer team, no prom, no graduation, no giving away the bride, no waiting for the arrival of grandchildren. All the while, Kevin Willing goes about his business each and every day and I wonder if he tells those he meets what kind of man (or sub-human rather) he really is. How many suspect that when they shake hands with Kevin Willing, there is blood on those hands?

Doesn't seem fair does it? But, who said life was fair? So, if you happen to meet a mentally slow man, currently around 40 years old, whose name is Kevin Willing, who may be putting out road construction barriers labeled "Traffic Control & Protection" (if he still works for them); introduce yourself and congratulate him; after all not many of us can list on our roll of achievements the item "I got away with murder."