Rally held for Chicago woman charged with killing allegedly abusive boyfriend

A rally was held in Daley Plaza on Monday for a Chicago woman accused of killing her abusive boyfriend in 2022.

Community organizations, domestic violence agencies, and public defenders are pushing for charges to be dropped against Keshia Golden.

"Fifty thousand women and girls are killed every year by an intimate partner or a family member," said Holly Krig, director of organizing for Moms United Against Violence and Incarceration.

According to her attorney, Golden stabbed her boyfriend, Calvin Sidney, in the leg after Sidney slammed her head into a counter following a baby shower.

Sidney died from his injuries.

Last month, the Cook County State's Attorney's office offered a plea deal to lesser charges of second-degree murder for Golden. But Golden's attorney wants the case dismissed altogether.

"I'm here to say that prosecuting a woman who is protecting herself and her unborn child from a man who is abusing her is a complete waste of county time and resources," said Julie Koehler, the Cook County Assistant Public Defender representing Golden. 

Shanice Page, a reclamation specialist for care coordination at the Women's Justice Institute, talked about going through a struggle much like Golden's. As noted in published reports, Page was charged in 2019 with shooting and killing her boyfriend, Chaseton London Walker, in what she has also said was in defense of her own life and that of her unborn baby.

"In 2019, I survived my abuser's attempt to end my life, but now I needed to survive the justice system," Page said. "During my own pretrial, the years of abuse, coercion, and trauma I endured did not seem to be a factor. I wasn't met with support or understanding. Instead, I was met with confusion, neglect, false narratives, allegations of ulterior motives, and a system that made my survival feel like a crime. I spent five years incarcerated in my home protecting myself and my children from someone who fully intended to end my life."

Golden's attorney argued that Sidney had a documented history of domestic violence, and Golden acted in defense of herself and her unborn child.  

Dyanna Winchester, also a reclamation specialist for the Women's Justice Institute, said Golden had called police and sought out protection — but was left on her own.