REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON CRIMINAL
JUSTICE
The Honorable,
The Board of Commissioners of
ATTENDANCE
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Present: |
Chairman Collins, Vice Chairman
Beavers, Commissioners |
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Absent: |
Commissioners Maldonado and
Steele (2) |
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Also Present: |
Patrick Driscoll – |
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Your Committee on Criminal Justice of
the Board of Commissioners of Cook County met pursuant to notice on
Your Committee has considered the
following items and, upon adoption of this report, the recommendations are as
follows:
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286858 |
RESOLUTION REGARDING THE REPORT OF SPECIAL PROSECUTORS
EDWARD J. EGAN AND ROBERT D. BOYLE (PROPOSED RESOLUTION). Submitting a Proposed Resolution sponsored
by Earlean Collins, Forrest Claypool, Joan Patricia Murphy, Anthony J.
Peraica, Mike Quigley, Deborah Sims and Larry Suffredin, Cook County
Commissioners. PROPOSED RESOLUTION REPORT OF SPECIAL PROSECUTORS EDWARD J. EGAN AND ROBERT D. BOYLE WHEREAS, Cook County is a home rule unit
of local government pursuant to Article VII Section 6(a) of the 1970 Illinois
Constitution, and as such may exercise any power and perform any function
pertaining to its government and affairs; and WHEREAS, on April 24, 2002, The Hon. Paul
Biebel, Presiding Judge of the Criminal Division of the Circuit Court of Cook
County, appointed Edward J. Egan as Special State’s Attorney and Robert D.
Boyle as Chief Deputy Special State’s Attorney to investigate allegations
that Area 2 Violent Crimes Commander Jon Burge and Chicago Police officers
under his command had systematically tortured scores of African American
citizens at the Area 2 police headquarters; and WHEREAS, any special prosecutor appointed
to investigate a matter of significant concern in the Cook County criminal
justice system shoulders a grave responsibility to discharge his duties with
dispatch, independence and with appropriate zeal in order that the laws may
be enforced and public confidence in the justice system affirmed; and WHEREAS, the investigation conducted by
special prosecutors Egan and Boyle consumed over four years and cost the tax
payers of WHEREAS, it has been acknowledged, in
opinions of the Illinois Appellate Court, the Illinois Supreme Court, the
United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, the Chicago Police
Department’s own Office of Professional Standards, and elsewhere that Burge
and his subordinates committed numerous acts of torture against African
American men at Area 2 Police headquarters; and WHEREAS, it is common knowledge that
African Americans represent approximately 70% of the population in Illinois
prisons, jails and the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center; and WHEREAS, Egan and Boyle themselves
acknowledged in a written report that there was evidence beyond a reasonable
doubt that certain individuals had been abused by Burge and Area 2 detectives
under his command, and that there was reason to believe that abuse occurred
in “many other cases,”; and WHEREAS, it is alleged that shortly after
their appointment special prosecutors Egan and Boyle were presented with
evidence of indictable offenses committed by Burge and Area 2 detectives
under his command and that such offenses had occurred within the three year
Illinois statute of limitations; and WHEREAS, special prosecutors Egan and
Boyle sought no indictments at the conclusion of their investigation,
claiming that the statute of limitations barred prosecution of any of the
perpetrators of Area 2 torture; and WHEREAS, more than 210 individuals and
organizations active in the areas of human rights, criminal justice, civil
rights and racial justice have prepared a report entitled Report On The Failure Of Special
Prosecutors Edward J. Egan And Robert D. Boyle To Fairly Investigate Systemic
Police Torture In Chicago which requests a hearing on these
issues. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that
the Criminal Justice Committee of the Cook County Board of Commissioners
conduct a public hearing on the investigation conducted by *Referred to the Committee on Criminal Justice 05/15/07. *Deferred to t *Deferred in the Committee on Criminal
Justice 06/13/07. |
Chairman
Collins asked the Secretary to the Board to read the statement from the Office
of the Special Prosecutor into the record.
(See attached #1.)
Chairman
Collins stated: Throughout this
process the Office of the Special Prosecutor Edward J. Egan,
Chairman
Collins asked the Secretary to the Board to call upon the registered public
speakers.
Mr. Locke E. Bowman, Legal Director and
Clinical Associate Professor – The MacArthur Justice Center addressed the
Committee on Criminal Justice by reading his statement into the record. (See attachment #2.)
Commissioner Peraica asked Mr. Bowman whether
he referred his responses to the Special Prosecutor’s report to the Federal
authorities, in particular to the U. S. Attorneys Office in the Northern
District of Illinois.
Mr. Bowman replied yes.
Commissioner
Silvestri asked whether there are any remedies in the lawsuits.
Mr. Bowman replied: The lawsuits that are pending on behalf of
torture victims seek monetary damages only.
In addition, those who are suing and a number of others individuals have
concluded that they do not have a timely basis on which to sue. The victims who were victimized by torture
suffer ongoing affects of the torture. There are victims presuming no remedies
in court. There are 26 individuals
victimized by torture and who remain in prison today.
Commissioner Claypool inquired whether the
statue of limitation in a cover-up can be frozen.
Mr. Bowman responded that in certain
circumstances the statue of limitations can legally be towed. There are circumstances in which no one could
have possibility known about the crime that was committed.
Commissioner Quigley inquired about the
missed opportunities.
Mr. Bowman stated: The Special Prosecutor missed opportunities
beginning with his appointment in 2002.
There had been perjury committed if you accept the proposition that there
was torture and abuse at area 2, which everyone seems to have accepted at this
point. If you compare that reality
against the testimony that John Byrne gave in March 2001 you can only conclude
that he committed perjury in March 2001 well within the 3 years statute within
a year prior to the appointment of the Special Prosecutor. I don’t known why the opportunity missed
never has been explained to anyone.
Fundamentally, what we have here is a statue of limitation those 3 years
in length for crimes. We have an
investigation that took 4 years to complete; to spend 4 years investigating
crimes that you have to prosecute within 3 years does not make sense if you
have any intention whatsoever to proceed in good faith. The missed opportunities continued to
accumulate over the course of the investigation under the nose of the Special
Prosecutor, when lies were told to the grand jury and in the Federal
proceedings and well known to the Special Prosecutor when they appeared in the
investigation.
Commissioners
Chairman Collins asked the public
speakers to continue to seek help from their elected officials such as Congressman
Danny Davis and others.
Public
Speakers
1) Madison Hobley
2) Anthony Holmes
3) David Orr
4) Sandra Zakowski
5) Joey Mogul
6) Andrea Ritchie
7) Standish E. Willis
8)
9) Larry Kennon
10) Wallace “Gator” Bradley
11) Julian Pall
12) Virginia Clements
13) Catherine McMillan
14) George Blakemore
15) Bertha Escomilla
16) Carolyn Johnson
17) Robin Kaufman
18) Mary L. Johnson
19) Anthony Holmes
20) Kurt Fener
21) Jeanette Johnson
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287223 |
PROGRESS REVIEW OF THE PROPOSED RESOLUTION PROGRESS REVIEW OF THE WHEREAS, Cook County is a home rule unit
of local government pursuant to Article VII, Section 6(a) of the 1970
Illinois Constitution, and as such may exercise any power and perform any
function pertaining to its government and affairs; and WHEREAS, on June 15, 1999 juveniles
detained at the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center (“JTDC”)
filed suit against Cook County seeking declaratory and injunctive relief
under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 to redress violations of the Due Process Clause of the
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution; and WHEREAS, on December 20, 2002 Cook County
entered into a Memorandum of Agreement (“MOA”) in which they agreed to create
and implement a plan to house residents of the JTDC in an environment that,
at a minimum, is safe and clean, is free from excessive and unfair
discipline, and provides adequate care and services, including adequate food,
shelter, medical services, mental health care, and provides an adequate
environment for educational services, including security and transportation
services; and WHEREAS, the court appointed Michael J.
Mahoney and Charles A. Fasano as monitors to oversee the implementation of
the MOA; and WHEREAS, over a three year period neither
monitors, experts or other officials have been able to satisfy the conditions
as set forth in the MOA; and WHEREAS, with additional allegations of
abuse the FBI and Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced that they were
conducting investigations of the JTDC; and WHEREAS, on November 8, 2005 plaintiffs,
unsatisfied with the progress being made towards complying with the MOA,
filed a Petition to Enforce Cook County to fulfill the terms of the MOA; and WHEREAS, on May 18, 2006 both parties
again entered into an Agreed Supplemental Order (“ASO”) in which the court
monitors and their designees (Dr. David Roush, Carl Sanniti, Dr. Louis Kraus
and Dr. Michael Cohen) would present a Modified Implementation Plan (“MIP”),
to Cook County, designed to bring the JTDC into substantial compliance with
the MOA within six (6) months of its approval; and WHEREAS, on WHEREAS, subsequently, Brenda Welch has
reported that the JTDC has not fully complied with the MIP and that the staff
appears resistance to reform and new ideas and that the JTDC has failed to
follow up on accusations of abuse and that alleged abuse by staff members
persisted after retraining; and WHEREAS, NOW, THEREFORE, BE
IT RESOLVED, that
the Criminal Justice Committee of the Cook County Board of Commissioners
conduct a public hearing to review the progress being made toward complying
with the 2002 Memorandum of Agreement, the 2006 Agreed Supplemental Order and
the 2007 Modified Implementation Plan. *Referred to the Committee on Criminal Justice 06/5/07. *Deferred in the Committee on Criminal Justice 06/13/07. |
Commissioner Daley, seconded by
Commissioner Claypool, moved to defer Communication Nos. 286858 and 287223. The
motion carried.
Commissioner Silvestri moved to
adjourn the meeting, seconded by Commissioner Daley. The motion carried and the meeting was
adjourned.
YOUR COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS THE FOLLOWING
ACTION WITH REGARD TO THE MATTERS NAMED HEREIN:
Communication Number 286858 Deferred
Communication Number 287223 Deferred
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Respectfully
submitted, Committee
on Criminal Justice xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Earlean
Collins, Chairman |
Attest:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Matthew B. DeLeon, Secretary
The complete
audio recording of this meeting is available in the Office of the Secretary to
the Board,