In Burge case, Chicago nears a deal on $20 million police torture settlement

By Gary Washburn | Tribune staff reporter
    January 4, 2008


In the Jon Burge police torture case, Chicago has cleared one hurdle in a proposed settlement totaling nearly $20 million with four alleged victims, but one more hurdle remains before the City Council can vote on the matter next week.

The attorney for former Death Row inmate Aaron Patterson has submitted what city lawyers consider proper paperwork that would allow Patterson to collect his $5 million share of the settlement, but disagreement over a legal issue has yet to be resolved with Stanley Howard, another alleged victim of torture at the hands of Burge and members of his command at a South Side district.

No roadblocks remain with plaintiffs Madison Hobley and Leroy Orange, but the Daley administration has said it will seek council approval only after agreements are in place with all four men.

Aldermen, some of whom pushed Mayor Richard Daley for an accord in long-running negotiations between the city and attorneys for the four men, were eager to approve a settlement Dec. 12. They were disappointed when last-minute legal problems surfaced with Patterson and Howard.

Jon Loevy, Howard's attorney, submitted a legal document last month that reserved Howard's right to file future claims against the city for sexual assault and kidnapping convictions that were separate from the murder charge for which he was pardoned by then-Gov. George Ryan following a confession allegedly extracted after he was abused by police.

The city has insisted on a release of all claims by Howard, who would collect $800,000 under the proposed deal.

Loevy has not submitted a release "that would be acceptable to us ... but we understand he intends to provide that," said Jennifer Hoyle, a spokeswoman for the city's Law Department. Council approval of the entire settlement "is still on track" for Wednesday's meeting, Hoyle said.

But Loevy sounded somewhat less optimistic.

"We're discussing the matter with the city, and we are hopeful it will be on track," he said Thursday.

In Patterson's case, the city contended that his attorney, Frank Avila Jr., failed to produce a document showing he had the authority to settle for $5 million on his client's behalf. An angry Avila disputed that charge, threatened to walk away from deal and seek double what his client was to have received.

Avila since then submitted paperwork that met city muster, Hoyle said.

Avila confirmed Thursday that Patterson, who is in federal prison on a conviction that followed his release from Death Row, is back on board. But if the council does not approve the settlement Wednesday, "there is no deal, there is a breach and we are back to the drawing board," Avila said.
New settlement close in Burge police torture cases

January 3, 2008
BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall Reporter

With one legal roadblock removed and another expected to be eliminated by next week, the road is paved for City Council to approve a $19.8 million settlement with four former Death Row inmates allegedly tortured by former Chicago Police Lt. Jon Burge, officials said today.

Plaintiff Aaron Patterson’s lawyer has now produced the power of attorney that demonstrates he has the authority to settle the case for $5 million, according to Law Department spokesperson Jennifer Hoyle.

That’s a turnaround for attorney Frank Avila, who was so incensed when the City Council postponed its Dec. 12 vote on the settlement, he threatened to pull out of the deal entirely — and double his $5 million demand on Patterson’s behalf.

Avila confirmed that three weeks ago he drove down to the Kentucky prison where Patterson is a federal inmate to get Patterson’s signature on the power of attorney.

Asked why he backed off his earlier threat, Avila said, “It’s a risky venture. Five million in the hand is better than $10 million in the bush.”

The other legal hurdle involves the refusal by torture victim Stanley Howard to release the city from “future claims that may arise in connection with his separate rape convictions.”

Corporation Counsel Mara Georges has demanded that Howard agree to a blanket release from all future litigation.

On Thursday, Howard’s attorney Jonathan Loevy said he was “still working with the city to resolve the language” of a revised agreement, adding, “During negotiation and compromise, I’m hopeful we can resolve it within the next day.”

But, he also warned, “We are going to stand firm that we’re entitled to a standard release — no more or less than is usually required.”

Hoyle said she expects the final piece to fall into place in time for Wednesday’s Council vote.

Last month, the 11th-hour legal wrangling stalled Council approval of a settlement African-American aldermen have been demanding for years to close the book on one of the ugliest chapters in Chicago Police Department history.

A $7 million report by special prosecutors has concluded that 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.

City Hall is eager to get the settlement approved before career FBI agent Jody Weis takes over as police superintendent to make it easier for Weis to bridge the gap between citizens and police in African-American neighborhoods.

Last month, Daley told a police graduation ceremony that Weis’ arrival would mark a new era of accountability for police brass, adding, “Those who can’t take responsibility will have to leave. No more excuses. No more blaming the troops on the ground.”

On Thursday, the mayor telegraphed yet another change: He wants Weis to assign more police supervisors to afternoon-into-evening and overnight shifts, when most of the city’s crime occurs.

“You need accountability. You need people out there. [But], they can use the people in a much better way,” he said.

“The two most important shifts are the afternoon and the night shift…Those you have to really look at very carefully — who’s accountable, what managers are out there in those two shifts. That’s very important.”

The $19.8 million settlement calls for the city to pay: $800,000 to Howard; $1 million to attorneys for Howard and Madison Hobley; $5.5 million to Leroy Orange; $5 million to Patterson and $7.5 million to Hobley.

Whether or not Hobley receives the full amount hinges on the outcome of the federal government’s re-investigation into a 1987 South Side fire that killed seven people. Hobley was originally convicted of murder and arson in that fire but joined Orange, Patterson and Howard in being pardoned by former Gov. George Ryan in 2003.

Under the agreement, Hobley will get $1 million immediately and the remaining $6.5 million if he is not indicted by 2009, if the U.S. attorney’s office announces that he won’t be indicted, or if he is indicted, but found not guilty.