Chicago Should Pay Jackie Wilson, Exonerated in 1982 Cop Killings, $12.7M, Lawyers Say
Jackie Wilson responds to a question from the media at a news conference announcing a lawsuit filed on his behalf on Wednesday, June 30, 2021. (WTTW News)
A Chicago man exonerated in the 1982 killings of two on-duty Chicago police officers should get $12.7 million to resolve his lawsuit against the city, lawyers recommended Thursday.
For more than four decades, Jackie Wilson has said he was tortured by disgraced former Chicago Police Commander Jon Burge and the detectives who reported to him. Dozens of lawsuits and complaints alleging physical abuse have been filed against detectives trained by Burge, who city officials admit tortured and beat more than 100 Black men during his career.
A Cook County judge in December 2020 declared that Wilson was innocent of the murders of Chicago Police Officers William Fahey and Richard O’Brien in 1982. Wilson’s brother, Andrew, was convicted of killing both officers.
Wilson, who was tried three times for the murders, spent 36 years in prison before being released in 2018.
The proposed $12.7 million settlement is set to be considered Monday by the City Council’s Finance Committee. A final vote of the City Council could come on Wednesday.
Wilson’s lawsuit claims that not only was he tortured into confessing to killing Fahey and O’Brien but also that he was framed by dozens of prosecutors. The suit claimed former Mayor Richard M. Daley, who was Cook County State’s Attorney at the time, and former Chicago Police Superintendents Terry Hillard and LeRoy Martin conspired to cover up Burge’s torture. All have denied those allegations.
A judge prevented Wilson’s confession from being used against him, finding it was coerced by Burge and his squad of detectives.
Wilson, who was 22 in 1982, alleged Burge used cables clamped to his ears to deliver electric shocks to his head to force him to confess.
In March, the Cook County Board of Commissioners agreed to pay Wilson $17 million to resolve his lawsuit against county officials.
Chicago taxpayers have now paid more than $155 million in lawsuit settlements and judgments related to Burge’s conduct, including $5.5 million in reparations for torture survivors, approved in 2015 by the Chicago City Council.
In January, the City Council agreed to pay $8.75 million to Mark Maxson, who spent nearly 25 years behind bars after being convicted of murdering a 6-year-old boy based on a confession he said was coerced by Chicago police detectives trained by Burge.
In June, the City Council agreed to pay $14.75 million to James Gibson, who spent more than 29 years in prison after being convicted of a double murder he did not commit. Gibson has said he was tortured by detectives directly supervised by Burge.
Fired by the Chicago Police Department in 1993, Burge was convicted of perjury in 2010. Released from prison in 2014, Burge died four years later at the age of 70. He never faced criminal charges related to his time as an officer, and collected a pension from the city of Chicago until the day he died.
WTTW News coverage of policing and police reform is supported by The Joyce Foundation.
Contact Heather Cherone: @HeatherCherone | (773) 569-1863 | [email protected]
