Freed Inmate Sues Northwestern, Former Professor For $40 Million

By Chuck Sudo in News on Feb 17, 2015 6:40PM

Alstory Simon, who was freed from prison last October after Cook County prosecutors vacated his conviction in a 33-year-old double homicide, filed a lawsuit Tuesday morning against Northwestern University and David Protess, the former journalism professor who headed the school’s Medill Innocence Project, claiming Protess and others framed him for the murders. Story is seeking $40 million in damages and claims intentional infliction of emotional distress, malicious prosecution and conspiracy in the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court.

In 1999, Simon confessed to and was convicted of the 1982 murders of Marilyn Green and Jerry Hillard. His confession came 48 hours before another man, Anthony Porter, was set to die by lethal injection in the murders.

Simon was sentenced to 37 years in prison for the crimes and was eligible for parole in 2017, but later said he only confessed because he was promised he would receive a short sentence. Simon’s attorneys maintained their client’s innocence and claimed the confession was coerced by Protess and private investigator Paul Ciolino. (Ciolino and Jack Rimland, who represented Simon when he was convicted, are also defendants in the lawsuit.)

The Medill Innocence Project’s work on the Porter case made international headlines, but Northwestern and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office were investigating claims Protess lied and doctored records in this and other cases where students were researching wrongful convictions. Protess eventually resigned from Northwestern in June 2011 and formed the Chicago Innocence Project.

In the lawsuit, Simon’s attorneys James Sotos and Terry Ekl allege Northwestern allowed “a culture of lawlessness to thrive in Protess’ Investigative Journalism classes and investigations.”

“Protess instructed his students to investigate Porter’s case and develop evidence of Porter’s innocence, rather than to search for the truth,” the lawsuit said, accusing Protess and Ciolino of coercing a confession from Simon.

Ciolino testified under oath he coerced a confession from Simon using a videotape of an actor who claimed he knew Simon committed the murders, then contacted Rimland to represent Simon.

Anthony Porter was originally convicted in the Hillard and Green murders. His release after Simon’s confession spurred former Gov. George Ryan to place a moratorium on executions in the state and galvanized the movement to have capital punishment repealed in Illinois. Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez opened an investigation into Simon’s claims after reports her predecessor and mentor, Dick Devine, bowed to political pressure to free Porter.

Porter later filed a $24 million lawsuit against the city. City attorneys argued Porter had, in fact, committed the murders, and a jury rejected Porter’s lawsuit.