Chicago Lawyer Accused of Hiding Evidence Resigns
U.S. district judge says Jordan Marsh lied in case of black man shot by police
Associated Press
Jan. 5, 2016 12:14 a.m. ET
CHICAGO—A lawyer for the city of Chicago stepped down Monday after a federal judge accused him of hiding evidence in a fatal police shooting, the latest allegation of wrongdoing amid scrutiny of how the city deals with such cases.
Separately, the city agency that investigates police shootings vowed greater transparency, saying Monday that it would start divulging some details of active cases as it tries to bolster public confidence in the process.
Chicago has been dealing with fallout from the November release of a video showing a white officer fatally shooting black teenager Laquan McDonald in 2014. The video prompted protests and led to a wide-ranging civil-rights investigation of the entire police department by the U.S. Department of Justice.
On Monday, U.S. District Judge Edmond Chang issued a 72-page opinion in a civil lawsuit brought by relatives of Darius Pinex, a black man who was shot and killed by police during a 2011 traffic stop in Chicago.
The officers, Raoul Mosqueda and Gildardo Sierra, said they opened fire as Mr. Pinex refused orders and put his car in reverse. The officers had said they stopped Mr. Pinex because his car matched a description they heard on their police radio of a car suspected of involvement in an earlier shooting. But records emerged after the trial began that officers weren’t listening to the channel broadcasting the radio traffic about the suspect’s car. The judge said a city lawyer “intentionally concealed” that evidence.
The judge tossed a jury’s finding that the police shooting was justified, ordered a new trial and instructed the city to pay attorney’s fees to the plaintiffs.
“Attorneys who might be tempted to bury late-surfacing information need to know that, if discovered, any verdict they win will be forfeit and their clients will pay the price,” the judge wrote. He said Jordan Marsh, senior corporation counsel for the city, also later lied about when he was aware of the evidence.
The judge also accused the law department, which defends city employees accused of wrongdoing, of shoddy record-keeping, saying it contributed to the problem in the Pinex case.
The city law department announced Mr. Marsh’s resignation later Monday, saying it “does not tolerate any action that would call into question the integrity of the lawyers who serve” Chicago. It also said it was reviewing its training and evidence-gathering procedures.
But a lawyer for the Pinex family, Steve Greenberg, said Mr. Marsh’s actions reflect on the city law department as a whole.
“It shows the city hasn’t just fought to protect officers, it also fights tooth and nail to protect its lawyers,” Mr. Greenberg said. “I don’t think they cared that (Mr. Pinex) got killed, they didn’t care what the truth was and they didn’t care they cheated (with the evidence).”
A city law department spokesman said he didn’t have a way to leave a message for Mr. Marsh seeking comment. And there was no public telephone listing for a Jordan Marsh in Chicago.
Also Monday, the head of the Independent Police Review Authority—which is responsible for investigating complaints of excessive for by officers—told reporters that greater openness about investigations would be a point of emphasis as she tries to win the lost confidence of Chicagoans, many of whom believe the agency has buried police wrongdoing for years.
Sharon Fairley said IPRA still won’t be able to divulge all the details about investigations while they are under way. But she added: “The difference is we are no longer going to be standing by a hard-and-fast rule that we will never discuss the details of an investigation until it’s complete. I think that position is now untenable.”
In Mr. McDonald’s case, IPRA and city officials cited the ongoing investigation in not making the video public for more than a year. It was released Nov. 24 following a state court order. It showed Officer Jason Van Dyke shooting Mr. McDonald 16 times as he walked away from police carrying a folded 3-inch knife.
Protests sparked by the video included some directed at IPRA, which was created in 2007 ostensibly with the independence it needed to hold officers accountable. But in practice, it rarely ruled against officers.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel appointed Ms. Fairley, a former federal prosecutor, to head IPRA last month after her predecessor resigned amid the growing protests.
Ms. Fairley also said Monday that she wasn’t aware of any video of another recent disputed police shooting.
On Dec. 27, police fatally shot 55-year-old Bettie Jones, who authorities said was killed accidentally, and 19-year-old Quintonio LeGrier, who police said was being “combative.” Both were black.
Attorneys for the Jones family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the city Monday. A wrongful-death lawsuit was filed last week by Mr. LeGrier’s father.
Associated Press
Jan. 5, 2016 12:14 a.m. ET
CHICAGO—A lawyer for the city of Chicago stepped down Monday after a federal judge accused him of hiding evidence in a fatal police shooting, the latest allegation of wrongdoing amid scrutiny of how the city deals with such cases.
Separately, the city agency that investigates police shootings vowed greater transparency, saying Monday that it would start divulging some details of active cases as it tries to bolster public confidence in the process.
Chicago has been dealing with fallout from the November release of a video showing a white officer fatally shooting black teenager Laquan McDonald in 2014. The video prompted protests and led to a wide-ranging civil-rights investigation of the entire police department by the U.S. Department of Justice.
On Monday, U.S. District Judge Edmond Chang issued a 72-page opinion in a civil lawsuit brought by relatives of Darius Pinex, a black man who was shot and killed by police during a 2011 traffic stop in Chicago.
The officers, Raoul Mosqueda and Gildardo Sierra, said they opened fire as Mr. Pinex refused orders and put his car in reverse. The officers had said they stopped Mr. Pinex because his car matched a description they heard on their police radio of a car suspected of involvement in an earlier shooting. But records emerged after the trial began that officers weren’t listening to the channel broadcasting the radio traffic about the suspect’s car. The judge said a city lawyer “intentionally concealed” that evidence.
The judge tossed a jury’s finding that the police shooting was justified, ordered a new trial and instructed the city to pay attorney’s fees to the plaintiffs.
“Attorneys who might be tempted to bury late-surfacing information need to know that, if discovered, any verdict they win will be forfeit and their clients will pay the price,” the judge wrote. He said Jordan Marsh, senior corporation counsel for the city, also later lied about when he was aware of the evidence.
The judge also accused the law department, which defends city employees accused of wrongdoing, of shoddy record-keeping, saying it contributed to the problem in the Pinex case.
The city law department announced Mr. Marsh’s resignation later Monday, saying it “does not tolerate any action that would call into question the integrity of the lawyers who serve” Chicago. It also said it was reviewing its training and evidence-gathering procedures.
But a lawyer for the Pinex family, Steve Greenberg, said Mr. Marsh’s actions reflect on the city law department as a whole.
“It shows the city hasn’t just fought to protect officers, it also fights tooth and nail to protect its lawyers,” Mr. Greenberg said. “I don’t think they cared that (Mr. Pinex) got killed, they didn’t care what the truth was and they didn’t care they cheated (with the evidence).”
A city law department spokesman said he didn’t have a way to leave a message for Mr. Marsh seeking comment. And there was no public telephone listing for a Jordan Marsh in Chicago.
Also Monday, the head of the Independent Police Review Authority—which is responsible for investigating complaints of excessive for by officers—told reporters that greater openness about investigations would be a point of emphasis as she tries to win the lost confidence of Chicagoans, many of whom believe the agency has buried police wrongdoing for years.
Sharon Fairley said IPRA still won’t be able to divulge all the details about investigations while they are under way. But she added: “The difference is we are no longer going to be standing by a hard-and-fast rule that we will never discuss the details of an investigation until it’s complete. I think that position is now untenable.”
In Mr. McDonald’s case, IPRA and city officials cited the ongoing investigation in not making the video public for more than a year. It was released Nov. 24 following a state court order. It showed Officer Jason Van Dyke shooting Mr. McDonald 16 times as he walked away from police carrying a folded 3-inch knife.
Protests sparked by the video included some directed at IPRA, which was created in 2007 ostensibly with the independence it needed to hold officers accountable. But in practice, it rarely ruled against officers.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel appointed Ms. Fairley, a former federal prosecutor, to head IPRA last month after her predecessor resigned amid the growing protests.
Ms. Fairley also said Monday that she wasn’t aware of any video of another recent disputed police shooting.
On Dec. 27, police fatally shot 55-year-old Bettie Jones, who authorities said was killed accidentally, and 19-year-old Quintonio LeGrier, who police said was being “combative.” Both were black.
Attorneys for the Jones family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the city Monday. A wrongful-death lawsuit was filed last week by Mr. LeGrier’s father.
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