Mothers describe ‘traumatic’ photo shoot that led to charges against Belleville man
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Felony charges against a Belleville man stemmed from an outdoor photo shoot in downtown Belleville, according to a group of mothers who say he purposely drove his truck at their young daughters before yelling racial slurs at them in November.
Stewart R. Lannert, 78, of Belleville, was arrested and charged with two counts of aggravated assault, a Class 4 felony, on Dec. 30, 2020, in St. Clair County Circuit Court.
Both complaints filed by St. Clair County State’s Attorney James Gomric’s office described an incident on Nov. 7, 2020.
“(Lannert) knowingly and without justification, drove his motor vehicle, a bluish colored pickup truck, increasing the speed of the truck as he was driving, directly towards Charmel Wilburn, in close proximity to Charmel Wilburn, operating said vehicle in a manner which placed Charmel Wilburn in reasonable apprehension of receiving a battery,” one read.
The other complaint included the same date and description, substituting the name Mekka Weeden as the victim. Wilburn and Weeden are mothers of girls involved in the photo shoot on East Washington Street in Belleville.
Lannert’s attorney, Eric Rhein, didn’t respond to a request for comment last week. Belleville Police Department officials didn’t respond to a request for information on the case. Chris Allen, spokesman for the state’s attorney’s office, declined to comment on pending litigation.
The complaints against Lannert did not specify a location or other circumstances of the alleged aggravated assault.
“(Lannert) could have murdered my daughter and the other little girls,” said Wilburn, 38, a stay-at-home mom in Fairview Heights, whose 5-year-old daughter, Bella, was one of the models.
Lannert was released on Dec. 30, 2020, after posting the required 10% of his $45,000 bond, according to the circuit clerk’s office. He has not faced trial or been convicted of any crimes related to the incident.
Considering other standing charges against Lannert, Wilburn and photographer JoVonda Winters, whose then-4-year-old daughter also was part of the photo shoot, believe posting bond should not have been an option for him and that he should be held in jail until trial.
Lannert also is facing one felony and two misdemeanor charges from October, when he is accused of threatening to use fertilizer and dynamite to blow up the Belleville News-Democrat office; and three misdemeanors related to tickets for criminal trespass to buildings and carrying a concealed firearm in an alcohol establishment. He’s not been tried or convicted in relation to those allegations either.
“To me, (the truck incident) was damn near attempted murder,” said Winters, 40, of Belleville. “It was me and eight little girls in the middle of the street. He was not yielding. He was not stopping. He actually rammed on his gas.”
The majority, but not all, of the mothers and daughters on site were Black, according to Wilburn. Lannert is white.
At a March 26 preliminary hearing, 20th Judicial Circuit Court Judge Chris Hitzemann found probable cause to continue with the case against Lannert on the aggravated assault charges.
According to Wilburn and Winters:
- Winters was taking photos of eight girls, ages 3 to 9, who were posing on East Washington near her studio, JoMonique Photography on South High, around noon on Nov. 7, 2020.
- The photos were going to be used to help promote a new book in the “Little Miss” children’s series by O’Fallon author Amber Brogan, a friend of the families.
- The girls were surrounded by their mothers, including one who directed traffic as part of safety precautions recommended by a Belleville police officer who had made contact with them during the photo shoot.
- Lannert bypassed the mother directing traffic in his truck and “gunned it,” driving toward the group and prompting the mothers to push their daughters out of his way, Wilburn said.
- Lannert yelled racial slurs, including the “N-word;” stopped the truck and got out, walked around laughing and left when someone mentioned calling police, Winters said.
“The police came, and they knew exactly who we were talking about,” Wilburn said, noting that Lannert had a distinctive truck covered with Donald Trump and other bumper stickers.
“After it was done, my daughter was ready to go home. ... I had to bribe her with candy to get her to finish (the photo shoot). It was bad. She was crying. She was scared to walk near the street. She was traumatized.”
“The girls were crying, and the parents were upset,” Winters said.
A status conference on the case is scheduled for April 28 in St. Clair County Circuit Court. Conviction on a Class 4 felony in Illinois can result in a penalty of one to three years in prison and fines of up to $25,000.
In October, Gomric’s office charged Lannert with falsely making a terrorist threat against the BND, a Class 1 felony; harassment by telephone, a Class B misdemeanor; and disorderly conduct, a Class C misdemeanor. A grand jury indicted him on Nov. 20, 2020.
Police had searched Lannert’s home and determined that he would have been unable to carry out threats described in a voicemail and letter, which referred to fertilizer and dynamite in his basement, media bias against Trump and the BND’s failure to publish three of his letters to the editor.
A status conference on that case is scheduled for May 13 in St. Clair County Circuit Court.
Lannert has three other cases pending in St. Clair County. A pretrial conference is scheduled April 20 related to a ticket he received from Belleville police on Aug. 7, 2020, for criminal trespass to a building, a Class B misdemeanor; a Feb. 6, 2020, charge by the state’s attorney’s office for carrying a concealed firearm in an alcohol establishment, a Class A misdemeanor; and a 2017 ticket he received from Belleville police for criminal trespass to a building, a Class B misdemeanor.
Previously, Lannert pleaded guilty or was found guilty of three misdemeanors in St. Clair County, including disregarding a traffic-control device in 2011, harassment by telephone in 2010 and being under the influence of drugs or alcohol as a pedestrian in 2007.
This story was originally published April 5, 2021 at 7:00 AM.
