Third man sentenced for 2014 O’Neil Park beating death

Posted on April 1, 2016

Willie Chambers (left), Tory Washington (center) and Anthony Davis-Dickson (right) beat Ronald Smith to death in June 2014. (Photos courtesy McLean County Jail.)

By Adam Studzinski

BLOOMINGTON – The last of the three men convicted in the beating death of a homeless veteran in O’Neil Park in June 2014 has been sentenced.

Tory Washington, 21, of Bloomington was sentenced by a McLean County Judge Friday to 32 years in prison. Washington and one co-defendant, Willie Chambers, had pleaded guilty to murdering Ronald Smith. The third man, Anthony Davis Dickson, took the case to trial was found guilty of murder.

Chambers was sentenced in October 2015 to 42 years in prison. Davis-Dickson received a 35 year sentence in November 2015.

The prosecution argued Washington should be given 35 years in prison, citing his ill behavior during his time in McLean County Jail. Washington said he’s remorseful for the crime, and adds he should have removed himself from the situation on the night Smith was attacked.

Adam Studzinski can be reached at [email protected].

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