Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Illinois Cold Case: Wrongful Conviction Costs Chicago $10 Million

And a preventable case cost even more:

"Family of raped student gets $22m" by DON BABWIN  |  Associated Press, January 18, 2013

CHICAGO — The parents of a California woman who was raped and injured after Chicago police released her from custody in a troubled neighborhood despite her obvious mental problems said Thursday that a $22.5 million settlement with the city is a ‘‘bittersweet victory’’ that will help pay for her extensive continuing therapy.

The payout is the largest settlement for police misconduct in the city’s history. It was approved Thursday by the City Council at the same time as the settlement of another police abuse case, this one $10.25 million to a man who spent 26 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit....

Umm, that never happens in AmeriKa.

Christina Eilman was arrested at Midway International Airport in May 2006 because she was acting strangely and violently. Her parents phoned police from California asking them not to release the 21-year-old college student because she was bipolar.

Still, Eilman was released to fend for herself in a high-crime area. She ended up being raped at knifepoint before she fell or was thrown from a seventh-story window.

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