The deposition of Richard M. Daley has been scheduled in the civil rights case of Michael Tillman’s. On Monday, People’s Law Office attorneys and their co-counsel representing Michael Tillman agreed with lawyers for the City and Richard Daley to schedule the deposition for Friday, July 13, 2012. This will be the first time that Daley will have to respond under oath to questions posed by lawyers representing a torture survivor regarding what he knew about suspects being tortured by Chicago Police.

The lawyers for Michael Tillman, Richard Daley, and the City met again yesterday and made progress concerning the deposition of the former Mayor and Cook County States Attorney. The remaining outstanding issues will either be resolved at a final conference next Wednesday, May 9, 2012 and if issues are still outstanding, they will be presented to the judge for resolution.

The civil rights case is in regard to Michael Tillman, who was wrongfully arrested for murder on July of 1986 and tortured by two teams of Area 2 detectives working at the direction of Lt. Jon Burge and his “right hand man” John Byrne. Tillman was subjected to torture over four days and as a result, made false statements that were used to wrongfully convict him. Although Daley, who was Cook County State’s Attorney at the time, approved the death penalty in the case, Tillman was instead sentenced to life in prison.

In 2009, People’s Law Office filed a post-conviction petition on Tillman’s behalf, alleging that he was innocent, and that his admissions were a product of a pattern and practice of torture by Chicago Police detectives. After an exhaustive re-investigation, the Special Prosecutor agreed that Tillman’s case should be dismissed which it was in January of 2010. Tillman was then released from prison after serving 23 ½ years a crime he did not commit.

In July of 2010, People’s Law Office attorneys filed a federal civil rights damages case on Tillman’s behalf, naming multiple defendants, including Richard M. Daley. In her precedent setting decision, U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer decided in July 2011 that former Mayor Richard M. Daley could be held as a conspiring defendant in Tillman’s case.

To read more about our work on Michael Tillman’s case and other cases like it, visit the Chicago Police Torture page on this site.