Black Lives Matter Lake County Founder Clyde McLemore Physically Confronted His Employee

A pay dispute between two people inside a Black Lives Matter office in Illinois escalated into a physical confrontation. Police reports and surveillance footage later showed the clash was not their only altercation.

What began as a tense workplace argument inside a Waukegan office quickly spiraled into something far more dramatic. Surveillance footage later revealed a physical confrontation between the founder of Black Lives Matter Lake County and a staff member, a clash police say was rooted in a financial dispute.

The video shows the two facing each other beneath a large "Black Lives Matter" banner in a hallway shortly before the confrontation that would eventually draw police to the scene.

Police Respond to the Waukegan Office

As reported by Lake & McHenry County Scanner on March 3, 2026, police were called around 12:30 p.m. on January 12 to the Black Lives Matter Resource Center at 668 Lenox Avenue in Waukegan.

Officers responded to reports of a disturbance and a possible battery inside the office. When they arrived, police spoke with Clyde J. McLemore and Nyesha A. Hill, who said she worked for him as a project manager.

The Argument over Money

Both agreed that the confrontation began as a dispute over payment. McLemore told officers that Hill entered his office while he was working at his computer and asked him for money and cigarettes.

Bodycam footage referenced in the report shows him telling officers the organization "ain't got no money." He also referred to a grant that had already been spent, saying, "That money is gone."

Hill Challenges Him About the Funds

Hill told officers she came to the office because she wanted payment for work she said she had already completed.

She accused McLemore of spending money intended for the organization elsewhere. Hill told officers:

"I told him, 'it's not fair that I come here and I work and you running around taking care of other things that don't got nothing to do with Black Lives Matter with Black Lives Matter money.' I'm the one that make this joint work."

She said she refused to leave until the issue was addressed. That decision, according to police reports, is when the confrontation began to spiral.

Conflicting Accounts of How the Fight Started

McLemore told officers that Hill grabbed him by the hood and struck him as he tried to leave the office. Hill told officers the opposite: that McLemore shoved her first, which caused the confrontation to turn physical.

Police said the two pushed and struggled inside the office before the situation ended.

Injuries but No Arrests

Officers observed visible injuries on both individuals when they arrived. The New York Post reported that both were left with lip injuries after the scuffle. McLemore had scratches on his forehead and lip, while Hill had broken nails and a lip injury.

Neither person wanted to press charges. Hill told officers she "does not want to see a black man in jail," though she wanted the incident documented.

Because both had injuries and conflicting statements, officers said they did not have probable cause to make an arrest. But investigators would soon discover the conflict between the two had turned physical before.

Surveillance Footage Reveals an Earlier Altercation

While looking into the January confrontation, officers obtained surveillance footage showing a separate fight between the same two individuals months earlier.

The video shows a heated exchange unfolding in the narrow hallway outside the office. Meanwhile, the timestamp on the footage reads October 24, 2025, though the exact date remains disputed.

Hill told police it occurred on November 24 of that year, while McLemore believed it happened on November 2.

The Hallway Fight Caught on Camera

The clip begins with the two standing face-to-face beneath the Black Lives Matter banner. Within seconds, the confrontation escalates.

The video appears to show the pair grappling and striking each other as they move along the hallway wall. Objects fall to the floor as the struggle intensifies.

At one point, the fight spills partially onto the ground before both regain their footing. But the hallway confrontation would not be the last development in the dispute.

Legal Steps Taken Afterward

Following the January incident, court records show McLemore later obtained an emergency stalking no-contact order against Hill. A hearing regarding a longer-term order was scheduled in Lake County court.

McLemore declined to comment publicly about the incidents when contacted by reporters.

Background on Both Individuals

The situation has drawn additional attention because of McLemore's public role.

According to Lake & McHenry County Scanner, the 67-year-old serves as the founder of Black Lives Matter Lake County and is also a member of the Lake County Regional Board of School Trustees.

In October 2024, he was sentenced to 40 days in jail for taking photographs inside a Lake County courtroom and posting them online in violation of courthouse rules.

In a video at the time, he acknowledged the violation while saying, "I do what I want to do."

McLemore has previously been arrested for trespassing during a Waukegan City Council meeting and for participating in civil unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Meanwhile, Hill also has a criminal history, including a 2020 kidnapping case in Zion where she and an accomplice beat a victim and demanded ransom for his release. She later served more than four years in prison in connection with that case.

For now, the January confrontation remains documented in police reports but did not lead to charges. The earlier hallway brawl, captured on surveillance footage, later became part of the broader dispute between the two.