Chicago Area Local News

CHICAGO (CBS) ― A deal that was supposed to settle cases of torture by Chicago police abruptly fell apart in City Council Wednesday and set off an angry exchange and a lot of frustration.

The $19.8 million settlement was announced last Friday on behalf of four former death row inmates who claimed Jon Burge and his subordinates tortured them into confessing to crimes they did not commit.

The funds would be split between Aaron Patterson, Madison Hobley, Stanley Howard and Leroy Orange, who were among scores of black suspects who claimed they were kicked, beaten and shocked into confessions in the 1970s and 80s at the Area 2 detective headquarters, which Burge headed in the 1980s.

CBS 2's Mike Parker reports the City Council has deferred the settlement because the city and one of the plaintiffs are at odds over one phrase in the document, which is keeping it from becoming a done deal.

Howard signed the agreement but penciled in a condition that he could file further legal claims against the city.

The city's chief lawyer ran it past the federal judge handling the case.

"Judge Aspen agrees with us and has said, putting in that language makes it different than what we had agreed to," Corporation Counsel Mara Georges said.

What could be a weeks-long delay in getting final council approval of the deal, set off fireworks as attorneys representing the various victims began sniping at each other much of it about money.

"I don't know if this is a trick of the city. I don't know if this is a trick of some of the other attorneys. I don't know what it is. But if the deal is not done today, then Aaron Patterson will not have the deal and we want more money," Patterson's attorney Frank Avila shouted.

"Leroy orange waited over 20 years and we feel the deal should go forward," Orange's attorney G. Flint Taylor said.

From the sidelines, A Patterson supporter kept taunting and interrupting Taylor.

"How can you tell me to be quiet. Both sides of the story? That's only one side. That's a crook and a shyster," Wallace Bradley shouted.

Patterson was awarded $5 million in the original deal. Now his attorney wants to renegotiate the settlement. He says he now wants $10 million.

The city hopes to have a new deal before the city council sometime in January.

Tax dollars inevitably would fund the settlement. Ald. Richard Mell (33rd) told CBS 2's Kristyn Hartman that taxpayers should be upset about the prospect.

"It's unfortunate that this case has been dragging on that long. It's costing the taxpayers of Chicago $19 million," Mell said. "And we should learn from our mistakes and make sure that this does not happen again."

But Taylor said it is necessary that the city pay for the settlement.

"The city needs to foot this bill because the city is responsible, whether it comes from the Police Department's budget, or from the city's budget," Taylor said. "The taxpayers have unfortunately been forced to defend Burge, but now that the victims need to be compensated, they have to be compensated by the city, because the city is responsible for what happened."

Taylor said he strongly feels the settlement should have been approved on Wednesday, at least for the plaintiffs who signed off on it.

A four-year study by two court-appointed special prosecutors released in July 2006 found that the torture occurred, but that the incidents were so old that the statute of limitations had long since run out, making it impossible to bring charges.

Burge was fired by the police department in 1993 after a suspect in the murder of two officers allegedly was abused while in his custody. Attorneys for the alleged torture victims say he should still be prosecuted, and federal authorities have discussed the possibility.

The $19.8 million settlement calls for Hobley to receive $7.5 million, Orange $5.5 million, Patterson $5 million and Howard $1.8 million, Ald. Ed Smith (28th) said.

But Hobley has been identified as a subject of a federal arson and murder investigation and Smith said under the terms of the settlement, he will receive $1 million when it receives final approval and the other $6.5 million at the end of 2009 if he has not been indicted.

The four were part of a story that made international headlines in January 2003 when then-Gov. George Ryan pardoned them and commuted the sentences of every death row inmate in the state in a stinging rebuke of capital punishment.

Hobley and Orange have been out of custody since Ryan ordered them pardoned. Howard remained in prison on unrelated charges. Patterson also was released from prison, but in August was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison after being convicted on drug and weapons charges.

CBS 2's Mike Parker and Kristyn Hartman and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

cbs2chicago.com's Most Popular Pages
 Slideshow: This Week In Celebrity History
 Slideshow: The Search For Stacy Peterson
 Slideshow: Extravagant Celebrity Gifts
 Slideshow: '90s TV Stars Then & Now
 Slideshow: What A Way To Go
 Slideshow: In To Be Out: Gay Celebrities
 Slideshow: Did You Know? Stars From Chicago!

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)