Patrick lives in South Philadelphia with his wife and children. He has worked with the same construction company for the last ten years.
Patrick, who grew up in Baltimore, has a long history of being bullied by the police. Starting when he was twelve years old, he and his friends were regularly stopped and harassed. He has been falsely arrested more than once, and has been mistakenly identified by the FBI for crimes committed by someone else named Patrick Williams.
The repercussions of these false arrests have included a lingering criminal record, restricted movement, and the loss of several friendships.
Patrick had a lot to share the day we sat down. You can listen to the full 47-minute interview on SoundCloud by clicking the link below, or you can listen to the first half of our interview as a series of seven vignettes right from this page.
The Full Interview with Patrick Williams
1) Early Experiences: Patrick reminisces about how he wanted to be a police officer when he grew up, and why he still does.
2) “What You Wanted From Me, I Didn’t Have”: Being the youngest of his friends, Patrick began being singled out by police to get information about the rest of the group
3) Just Asking Questions: Patrick recalls his first encounter with police officers at age twelve
4) False Charges: Coming home from work, 19-year-old Patrick was arrested, allegedly for selling drugs.
5) Courtroom Antics: Patrick, charged with drug possession, had a series of setbacks in court.
6) Wrong Patrick: Already incarcerated, Patrick began getting regular visits from the FBI who had him mistaken for someone else.
7) Wrong Patrick part 2: The FBI’s investigation of Patrick led to several restrictions that cost him portions of the next 10 years of his life.
Kris J. Eden 