Man Gets Largest Award for Wrongful Conviction in Chicago History

By Camela Furry in News on Jun 23, 2009 2:40PM

In 1989 Juan Johnson, then 19, was arrested for murdering a rival gang member with a two-by-four outside a nightclub in Humboldt Park. He was later convicted and sentenced to a 30-year prison term and served eleven and a half years before he was acquitted in 2004. On Monday, Johnson was awarded $21 million in compensatory damages which is the largest award for wrongful conviction in Chicago history according to Chicago Breaking News.

His attorneys claim he was framed by Chicago police detective Reynaldo Guevara who specialized in gang investigations. Johnson’s attorney told ABC 7, “This is a murder that happened in a public place. There were 150 witnesses, there’s all kinds of physical evidence. He managed to close it in a couple hours, getting people who didn’t even see it to point the finger at Juan Johnson.” Chicago Breaking News reported that witnesses in the acquittal trial “testified that Guevara intimidated them into saying Johnson was the murderer.” The jury agreed that Guevara was at fault.

City of Chicago attorney Jim Sotos told ABC 7, “What they weren’t told was that two witnesses, who later changed their stories years later, were forced to do so by gang leaders. That was evidence that the judge excluded.” Sotos also told ABC 7 that Guevera was regularly targeted by gangs, “What they do is manipulate the court system through intimidating witnesses and they force witnesses to change their testimony.”

Johnson said he was just looking for an apology from Guevara. Guevara’s legal team objected because they will appeal and an apology could effect the chance of getting the decision reversed. Guevara will be responsible for paying $15,000 in punitive damages which the jury awarded in addition to the $21 million. ABC 7 reports that Northwestern University’s Center on Wrongful Convictions is investigating “more than 40 alleged frame-ups by Detective Guevara.” [Chicago Breaking News, ABC 7]