City to pay $10M in another Burge misconduct case

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/story/20585680/city-to-pay-10m-in-anot...

17
City to pay $10M in another Burge misconduct case
Posted: Jan 14, 2013 4:47 PM Updated: Jan 14, 2013 4:47 PM

Grand Canyon Clear

Site Web

Search...

CHICAGO (FOX 32 News) - Chicago will pay $10.25 million to compensate a man who spent 26 years in prison for a murder he did not commit because of an alleged coverup engineered by now-convicted police Commander Jon Burge. The 11th-hour settlement with Alton Logan will head off a trial that could have forced Burge to testify in court via video hookup from a federal prison in North Carolina for the first time in 20 years, the Sun-Times is reporting. The Logan settlement is on the agenda for Tuesday's meeting of the City Council Finance Committee, which is expected to approve it. A $7 million report by special prosecutors concluded Burge and his Area 2 underlings tortured criminal suspects for two decades while police brass looked the other way. But the report concluded it's too late to prosecute because the statute of limitations has long since run out. Burge was convicted in June 2010 of perjury and obstruction of justice for lying in a civil court case when asked if he knew of the torture that went on under his watch. He is currently serving a 4 1/2-year sentence in federal prison. In 1982, Logan was arrested and charged with fatally shooting Lloyd Wickliffe, an off-duty Cook County corrections officer moonlighting as a security guard, during a robbery attempt at a South Side McDonald's. Logan, then 28, was convicted and sentenced to life in prison, even though there was no physical evidence linking him to the murder. In April 2008, Judge James Schreier vacated Logan's conviction after attorneys Jamie Kunz and Dale Coventry revealed that Andrew Wilson a convicted cop killer who was their client admitted he had killed Wickliffe. The attorneys kept the confession secret until Wilson died in prison in 2007, saying they were bound to honor their oath of confidentiality. Logan subsequently filed a wrongful conviction suit against the city and the detectives who arrested him. Unlike other Burge victims, Logan did not claim to have been tortured into confessing to a murder he did not commit. Rather, Logan's lawsuit maintained that evidence that would have exonerated him was covered up and even concealed from the Cook County State's Attorney's office. Specifically, Logan alleged that Burge and his underlings knew when Wilson was arrested for gunning down Officers William Fahey and Richard O'Brien that Wilson had in his possession a .38-caliber gun that had been stolen from Wickliffe on the night the security officer was killed. Logan further contended that witnesses had fingered Wilson but that information, too, was withheld. If Wilson's attorneys had been free to reveal their client's confession, Chicago taxpayers might have been spared the $10.25 million. But, Coventry said Monday he feels not one iota of guilt or responsibility for the costly settlement. "I was doing what I needed to do as an attorney. I had a responsibility to do what I needed to do for my client," he said. "Had I come forward earlier, it wouldn't have made a difference. They already knew Andrew Wilson was the killer because of the sawed-off shotgun found in his possession that was linked to the murder at the McDonald's. It was a far better case to go after Andrew Wilson. Yet, it was a Police Department decision to go after Logan." Coventry added, "They tolerated the police brutality and all the other things that went on with Burge at Area 2, and defended them and continued to defend them. The only way to put pressure on police is if it costs the city so much money that the politicians" put a stop to it. The settlement lists the city, Burge and four other defendants: George Basile, Thomas McKenna, Fred Hill and Anthony Katalinic. Before the $10.25 million settlement, civil rights attorney Flint Taylor had estimated taxpayers had shelled out $30 million to compensate Burge's alleged torture victims and $16 million in legal fees. The payment to Logan would bring the overall total to $56.25 million. Last year, Mayor Rahm Emanuel signed off on $7.1 million in settlements that spared former Mayor Richard M. Daley from answering questions under oath about allegations that as state's attorney and mayor he failed to investigate torture allegations against Burge. The question now is whether Emanuel will deliver the apology that Logan demanded but never heard from Daley, who was serving as state's attorney at the time of Logan's arrest. "There's only one person whose mouth I want to hear that [apology] come out of, but I know he'll never say it. Your mayor," Logan said on the day that a Cook County judge dismissed the
Follow Us Fan Page FOX 10's Most Shared Stories: More

1 of 3

1/14/2013 6:02 PM

City to pay $10M in another Burge misconduct case

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/story/20585680/city-to-pay-10m-in-anot...

Referring to Daley, Logan said, "He was the man [who] signed the death certificate. That's the only apology I want. But, I know I'll never get it." At the time, Daley responded to Logan's demand by claiming he couldn't even remember the case of the man whose legal odyssey was featured on "60 Minutes." Pressed on whether an apology was warranted, Daley said then, "I have no idea. You know how many cases we had in the state's attorney's office?"

FROM AROUND THE WEB

When does wife get your Social Security?
(Bankrate.com)

YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN

Freezing temps put Arizona's citrus crop in jeopardy (MyFox Phoenix) George Clooney gets caught in bed with Cindy Crawford (MyFox Phoenix) Police shoot armed man in Calif. movie theater (MyFox Phoenix) Man regrets calling cops on roommate with sledge hammer (MyFox Phoenix) Hundreds attend Crossroads of the West gun show in Mesa (MyFox Phoenix) Female motorcyclist critically injured in hit-and-run (MyFox Phoenix)
[?]

Man poses as woman on dating site to lure iPhone thief, another films (CSO) Jack Osbourne Arrives at His House Shortly after the Cops (Zim bio) What Are Your Rights During a Police Traffic Stop? (eHow) 9-year-old Girl Gives Birth to a Baby Boy
(itsybitsysteps)

Women Pose With Assault Rifles They Got for Christmas (PHOTOS) (Mam asLatinas)

0 comments

Discussion

Community

My Disqus

Share

ALSO ON MYFOXPHOENIX

RECOMMENDED FOR YOU

What's this?

Moving truck driver carjacked at gunpoint

9 comments

Air Force One

SnagFilms

Off-duty officer involved in deadly shooting 9 comments Brewer vows to deny licenses to deferred action students 1 comment California robbery suspect arrested at Phoenix bus station 5 comments Tempe Police: 6-month-old boy, father missing 2 comments Obama demands quick action to raise debt limit 5 comments

Carter, Clinton, Bush and Bush on the Power of Air Force One SnagFilms Is it Real? Da Vinci's Code
SnagFilms SnagFilms

Search for the Battleship Bismarck VIDEO: Savage Secrets of the Lions that Roam Africa After Dark SnagFilms 3-Minute B.A.: A Writer's Guide to Sounding Smart at Parties Contently

Follow Us

Fan Page

FOX 10's Most Shared Stories:

More

2 of 3

1/14/2013 6:02 PM

City to pay $10M in another Burge misconduct case

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/story/20585680/city-to-pay-10m-in-anot...

KSAZ-TV & KUTP 511 W. Adams St. Phoenix, AZ 85003 Phone: (602) 257-1234 Fax: (602) 262-0177

All content Copyright 2000 - 2013 Fox Television Stations, Inc. and Worldnow. All Rights Reserv Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Ad Choices

Follow Us

Fan Page

FOX 10's Most Shared Stories:

More

3 of 3

1/14/2013 6:02 PM