Nov 5, 2009 4:14 pm US/Central
Burge's Trial Postponed For Cancer Treatments
Former Area Two Commander Accused Of Lying About Torture
CHICAGO (AP) ―
-
-
Former Chicago Police Cmdr. Jon Burge (File Photo)
CBS
A federal judge on Thursday agreed to postpone the trial of a former Chicago police commander charged with lying about the use of torture on suspects so the defendant can undergo treatment for prostate cancer.
The case against Jon Burge, which includes emotional allegations about police conduct that have simmered in Chicago for decades, had been set to go to trial on Jan. 11. Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow rescheduled it for May 10.
Defense attorneys fought off an effort by prosecutors to move up the trial to Nov. 30, saying they were too busy with cases already scheduled for December.
Lefkow made it clear she was reluctant to grant the defense's request for postponement. She said she could imagine Burge's attorneys coming back in May to ask for additional time, saying their client was in a weakened condition following his treatment.
"I can see this being put off and put off," the judge said. She warned the defense attorneys that "if you come back and say I can't do it I'm going to scrutinize that very carefully."
Burge, 61, was commander of the violent crimes unit at a South Side detective headquarters. For decades he has been at the center of a storm over whether police used torture to force confessions out of suspects.
Burge was fired by the police department in 1993 and now lives in Florida.
In July 2006, two special prosecutors named to look into the allegations said evidence indicated that dozens of suspects were mistreated during the 1970s and '80s but the cases were too old to bring charges.
Burge was charged in October 2008 with obstructing justice by lying under oath on written answers in a civil lawsuit when he denied he knew about or took part in beatings, threats and such other torture methods as "bagging" -- forcing a confession by a putting a plastic typewriter cover over a suspect's head.
He has pleaded not guilty.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Jewish Celebrities
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
