Daley To Give Deposition In Police Torture Case

By Chuck Sudo in News on Apr 10, 2012 4:40PM

City attorneys announced today that former Mayor Richard M. Daley will answer questions in a deposition stemming from a lawsuit related to the systemic torture that happened in the Chicago Police Department under the watch of former Cmdr. Jon Burge.

Attorneys for Michael Tillman have been fighting for this for years. Tillman was convicted in a 1986 rape and murder and served nearly 24 years in prison before his conviction was vacated and charges dismissed by a Cook County special prosecutor in January 2010. He received a certificate of innocence from the Circuit Court of Cook County one month later. Last August, U.S. District judge Rebecca Pallmeyer ruled that Daley could be included on witness lists and sued for alleged police brutality conspiracies related to the torture practices that occurred under Burge. They're seeking to find out what Daley knew about the Burge torture practices when he was Cook County State's Attorney and as recently as last month filed a motion to force Daley to testify under oath. City attorneys representing Daley have fought the requests for months.

The two sides will meet Thursday to discuss the deposition, including the scope of the deposition and what can be asked of Daley under oath.