Elderly Dad Tries to Speak For Son Charged With Beating Him

As his son was led from the lockup into the courtroom, George Williamson slowly raised himself from his wheelchair and stood.

The deputies in the Bridgeview courtroom ordered Williamson to sit back down. He did, but when the brief hearing drew to a close, Williamson shouted out to Cook County Judge Colleen Hyland.

"Your honor," was all Williamson got out before the judge threatened to take him into custody and the deputies told him to be quiet.

The old man, who suffers from emphysema and had an oxygen tube in his nose, was then led from the courtroom by an acquaintance.

Williamson was at the Bridgeview courthouse to see his son, Mark Williamson, appear on charges of attempted murder, aggravated battery and unlawful restraint. The man Mark Williamson was charged with attempting to murder was his own father, George Williamson.

Mark Williamson, 46, allegedly attacked his then-76-year-old father in November. When the older man called 911 for help, he said he suffered his injuries in a fall. He later accused his son of choking and beating him while speaking with a friend who is an Orland Park police officer.

During an earlier court hearing, George Williamson testified that he was savagely attacked not by his son but by a demon with slanted eyes and a blue-green face. He eventually conceded that it was his son who did it.

Before his arrest, Mark Williamson was caring for his father, who in addition to emphysema suffers from heart disease. At the time of the alleged attack, Mark Williamson had not been taking medication for his mental health issues, a public defender said at a previous hearing.

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