Cop who tortured over 118 men gets less than 4 years jail time and keeps 4k pension

[Oldgamer]

This is just one cop who got caught but many more were also found to have done this same thing as this guy. He gets to keep his 4k a month pension, which he was paid while in jail and spent less time than most convicted of non violent crimes in his state. In addition many of the men (who he tortured and forced false confessions out of to crimes they didn't commit) are still behind bars to this day. Many of these men are still in prison and have spent as much as 24 years in jail. Some can't even sue because of the statute of limitations that has run out. What is sadder still is that they don't get any monthly monetary allowance, some came out of prison ruined for life and no way to get a job.

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Jon Burge is a 66-year-old ex-police commander who is said to have overseen the torture of 118 Black men who were in Chicago police custody over 30 years ago.

He walked out of federal prison a free man after serving only three and a half years in a minimum security prison. Burge was granted early release into a halfway house in Tampa, Florida. And that’s not even the worst part!
Burge gets to start his life over with a $4,000-a month police pension that he gets to keep (and he was getting while behind bars) because Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan couldn’t get it overruled.

Anthony Holmes was one of the victims Burge personally tortured with electric shock (among many other things) for him to confess to a murder he says he didn’t commit.

Holmes, who is now pushing 70, spent 30 years in prison as a result of confessing to the murder, hasn’t seen any compensation for his torture because the statute of limitations on the torture has run out. “At least he’s got a pension,” Holmes said of Burge, according to DNAinfo Chicago. “We came out of there with nothing.”

While some of the victims who were wrongly incarcerated as a result of Burge-era police torture have received millions of dollars worth of settlements, others, like Anthony Holmes and Darrell Cannon, have not.

Cannon was brutally shocked in the genitals with an electric cattle prod, beat with a flashlight and repeatedly put an empty shotgun into his mouth and pulled the trigger before he was wrongly convicted of murder in 1983 and imprisoned for 24 years. He was finally dismissed of the murder charge and released in 2007.

As many as 20 of Burge’s torture victims still remain behind bars today. 65 of those 118 torture cases are currently being heard by the Illinois Torture Inquiry and Relief Commission. Burge was convicted in 2011 of perjury and obstruction of justice for lying about police torture. Several members of the Chicago City Council called for a reparations fund of $20 million — roughly the amount Burge and his “midnight crew” of detectives have cost Chicago taxpayers over the years in legal defense fees and settlements alone.

Chicago’s tax-payers had to pay more than $120,000,000 for their hideous torture on these 118 Black men. Here’s the breakdown:

$66.8 million to torture victims
Over $22 million in ongoing pension payouts to Burge’s collaborators
Over $20 million in legal defense to Burge and his henchmen
Over $15 million to investigate and prosecute Burge’s crimes
$0 for rehabilitation, job-training, education, medical and psychological treatment to torture victims

SMH. There’s not much left to say, except, I hate our justice system. The torturer goes free with a stipend as the tortured are imprisoned and impoverished.

Link to news article

 

[The Merg]

That's just sick...

He basically oversaw it and was only convicted of perjury and obstruction? No wonder he only got 4 years. If he oversaw it and knew what was going on, he should be guilty of doing the torture himself.

- Merg

 

[Oldgamer]

This is why I am strongly opposed to the death penalty. Way too many people are put in Prison and put on Death Row for crimes they did not commit. They get stuck into situations like this.

 

[Nebor]

Well at least they're getting the rehabilitation, job-training, education, medical and psychological treatment for free.

 

[positivedoppler]

Pretty much the theme in this country. Police officers are held accountable to absolutely no standards whatsoever and tax payers flips the bill when they screw up hard enough.

 

[MrPickins]

well at least they're getting the rehabilitation, job-training, education, medical and psychological treatment for free.

:awe:


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:'(

 

[her209]

The corruption runs deep.

 

[kage69]

Holy shit! :O

 

[Paul98]

The US has gotten to the point where there is no justice, it's soooo crazy how it's setup and how it works I don't see it ever changing.

 

[Darwin333]

Even some of the most horrendous shit possible and the cop gets less time than a fuckton of people charged with simple possession and comes out of jail getting a taxpayer funded $50K a year retirement despite ruining an untold amount of lives.

At first glance the pension isn't what really pisses me off, its the fact that asshole will ever have an opportunity to breathe a free breath and be able to spend the pension that really pisses me off. I consider torturing someone into confessing to a crime which results in an innocent person spending 20+ years in jail a crime at least equivalent of rape or murder, the bastard should have died in a max security prison.

We need a law that says if you knowingly and willfully perjure yourself and as a result of that perjury an innocent person is sentenced you will be given double the sentence that the person you lied about on the stand got. Throw a few of those fuckers in for life, and yes I am including prosecutors who willfully and knowingly commit perjury or withhold evidence or "hire" someone to commit perjury, and you might see some of this crap slow down.

 

[The Merg]

The issue is that he should be charged with the torture itself or conspiracy to commit the torture (many states consider conspiracy to commit the same as actually committing the crime). Anyone know what he was actually charged with compared to what he was found guilty of?

- Merg

 

[coffeejunkee]

I read he has a boat named 'Vigilante'. I'd rather see him on the 'Slice of Life' though.

 

[werepossum]

That's just sick...

He basically oversaw it and was only convicted of perjury and obstruction? No wonder he only got 4 years. If he oversaw it and knew what was going on, he should be guilty of doing the torture himself.

- Merg

This - assuming the case is as presented here.

Even some of the most horrendous shit possible and the cop gets less time than a fuckton of people charged with simple possession and comes out of jail getting a taxpayer funded $50K a year retirement despite ruining an untold amount of lives.

At first glance the pension isn't what really pisses me off, its the fact that asshole will ever have an opportunity to breathe a free breath and be able to spend the pension that really pisses me off. I consider torturing someone into confessing to a crime which results in an innocent person spending 20+ years in jail a crime at least equivalent of rape or murder, the bastard should have died in a max security prison.

We need a law that says if you knowingly and willfully perjure yourself and as a result of that perjury an innocent person is sentenced you will be given double the sentence that the person you lied about on the stand got. Throw a few of those fuckers in for life, and yes I am including prosecutors who willfully and knowingly commit perjury or withhold evidence or "hire" someone to commit perjury, and you might see some of this crap slow down.

And this too, regardless of the specifics of this particular case.

 

[Genx87]

Where is Dexter Morgan when you need him?

 

[Jaskalas]

This is why I am strongly opposed to the death penalty. Way too many people are put in Prison and put on Death Row for crimes they did not commit. They get stuck into situations like this.

For the same reason, I oppose the death penalty except in clear cases such as Fort Hood. Cases where the person is publicly caught in the act and there's no doubt who did it.

 

[Jimzz]

The statute of limitations ran out on the torture part, that is why they could not get him for that.

That and when people run for office they want the police support so setting up harsher penalties for cops = you being anti-cop and pro-crime.
The pension board refused to cut his pension so that tells you how much police will go to protect themselves. So the "its only a few bad ones..." is BS when the "good" ones protect the bad ones as well.

 

[JEDIYoda]

So the "its only a few bad ones..." is BS when the "good" ones protect the bad ones as well.

Amen Brotha!!! Preach it!!!

 

[The Merg]

The statute of limitations ran out on the torture part, that is why they could not get him for that.

That and when people run for office they want the police support so setting up harsher penalties for cops = you being anti-cop and pro-crime.
The pension board refused to cut his pension so that tells you how much police will go to protect themselves. So the "its only a few bad ones..." is BS when the "good" ones protect the bad ones as well.

Not to say that I agree with the pension board, but did they refuse to cut his pension or were they not able to cut his pension.

It seems he was retired when he went to court and was already receiving his pension. Is there anything that allows the board to cut or eliminate his pension due to him being convicted of a crime after he has retired?

Now, if he was arrested while still on the job and allowed to retire as opposed to being fired, then that is something that should not have happened. If he was arrested while still working, he should be suspended until the outcome of the trial. If found guilty, he should be fired. That would make it so that he would not be eligible for his pension.

- Merg

 

[Jimzz]

Not to say that I agree with the pension board, but did they refuse to cut his pension or were they not able to cut his pension.

It seems he was retired when he went to court and was already receiving his pension. Is there anything that allows the board to cut or eliminate his pension due to him being convicted of a crime after he has retired?

Now, if he was arrested while still on the job and allowed to retire as opposed to being fired, then that is something that should not have happened. If he was arrested while still working, he should be suspended until the outcome of the trial. If found guilty, he should be fired. That would make it so that he would not be eligible for his pension.

- Merg

Yes they could have cut the pension legally. The Police Pension board voted 4-4, all 4 police on the board voting against cutting it. Since it was a tie he gets to keep the pension. The 4 that voted to cut the pension were not police.

As I said before when the "good" police keep protecting the bad ones there are no good ones anymore.
And if not for the statute of limitations the victims would get their day in court as well.


EDIT:

Holy cow!!! The guy was fired yet still got a pension...
"He was suspended from the Chicago Police Department in 1991 and fired in 1993 after the Police Department Review Board ruled that he had used torture."

And on top of that all his legal cost are being paid by the city.
"The City of Chicago continues to be bound by court order to pay for Burge's legal fees."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon_Burge

 

[master_shake_]

so... is he in pc all the time now?

 

[The Merg]

Yes they could have cut the pension legally. The Police Pension board voted 4-4, all 4 police on the board voting against cutting it. Since it was a tie he gets to keep the pension. The 4 that voted to cut the pension were not police.

As I said before when the "good" police keep protecting the bad ones there are no good ones anymore.
And if not for the statute of limitations the victims would get their day in court as well.


EDIT:

Holy cow!!! The guy was fired yet still got a pension...
"He was suspended from the Chicago Police Department in 1991 and fired in 1993 after the Police Department Review Board ruled that he had used torture."

And on top of that all his legal cost are being paid by the city.
"The City of Chicago continues to be bound by court order to pay for Burge's legal fees."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon_Burge

So, he was fired and he still got his pension? Now that I don't understand.

Around here, if a cop is fired they lose out on their pension.

- Merg

 

[Jimzz]

So, he was fired and he still got his pension? Now that I don't understand.

Around here, if a cop is fired they lose out on their pension.

- Merg

I'm guessing he was reinstated or allowed to "resign/retire"? I can't find more but he's still getting paid and all of his legal cost are being picked up by tax payers as well.

 

[waggy]

As I said before when the "good" police keep protecting the bad ones there are no good ones anymore.
And on top of that all his legal cost are being paid by the city.
"The City of Chicago continues to be bound by court order to pay for Burge's legal fees."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon_Burge

bold is true. I do believe there is a small percent of cops that do shit like this. trouble is even good cops will protect him. its digusting. why would they want to? it makes them all look bad. If i was a good cop i would be pissed about shit like this.

 

[Nebor]

bold is true. I do believe there is a small percent of cops that do shit like this. trouble is even good cops will protect him. its digusting. why would they want to? it makes them all look bad. If i was a good cop i would be pissed about shit like this.

Because you don't piss off the people that you count on to save your life. Look what happened to this backstabber.