West Allis man pleads guilty to making racist threats toward Black neighbors

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) - A Wisconsin man pleaded guilty to federal charges connected to racist threats he made against Black neighbors in West Allis.

William McDonald, 45, pleaded guilty to one felony count and one misdemeanor count of intimidating and interfering with Black residents because of their race and because they were exercising their right to fair housing.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) released a statement Thursday, citing court documents where McDonald admitted that in March 2021, he vandalized a Black woman’s vehicle parked outside her apartment by slashing her tires and smashing her windshield. McDonald then left a note on her car, filled with racial slurs, threatening to slash her throat, and demanding she move out of West Allis.

A week later, the DOJ says McDonald slashed two of her car tires and left another note filled with racial slurs and giving her an ultimatum – move out of the neighborhood or suffer violence. In April 2022, a Black woman and her two children moved into McDonald’s apartment complex. Shortly after they moved in, McDonald vandalized her front door with racial graffiti and left her a note, calling her family a racial slur and demanding she get out of the building.

McDonald faces a maximum sentence of up to 11 years in prison. A sentencing date has been set for June 29, 2023.