City Council Committee Approves Settling Another Jon Burge Torture Case

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jul 19, 2013 7:45PM

The City Council Finance Committee approved on Friday another $10 million payout tied to the systemic pattern of torture under former Chicago Police Lt. Jon Burge.

The Finance Committee approved the payment to Eric Caine and will go before the full Council at its Wednesday meeting, where it’s expected to pass with no problem. City Corporation Counsel Stephen Patton told the Finance Committee Caine’s case was the first one brought before the Finance Committee where a doctor corroborated the abuse allegations. A doctor who treated Caine at an area hospital before he was interrogated testified during a pre-trial session that he “believed Mr. Caine was tortured and there was actually physical evidence of that.”

Earlier this year the city settled another case related to Burge’s torture practices for $10.25 million. Counting legal fees, lawsuits filed against the city related to Burge have cost taxpayers nearly $70 million, with three more lawsuits pending. Police misconduct cases have cost taxpayers nearly $54 million to date this year and the city blew through its projected $27 million budget to settle lawsuits in January. Burge remains in a federal prison in North Carolina, where he’s serving a 4-1/2 year prison sentence for perjury and obstruction of justice.