U.S. jury acquits Chicago cop of brutality against Latino Teenager - Beaten & Handcuffed to a Wall for 4 Days

A federal jury cleared a Chicago police officer of using excessive force after a judge earlier Wednesday threw out the heart of a civil lawsuit alleging that a teenager had been chained to a wall during four days of questioning.  In July 2000 18-year-old Joseph Lopez was beat up by an arresting officer and then held incommunicado for approximately five days. During virtually this entire period, he was restrained in a police interrogation room with his wrist handcuffed to a ring on the wall. His only human contact was with police officers who coerced the teenager into confessing to a murder he did not commit. He was fed only three times during his detention. With no bedding, constantly interrogated, and shackled to the wall on a 10” x 48” metal bench, Lopez was subjected to sleep deprivation, which is widely recognized by international treaties and human rights authorities as a prohibited torture technique. After the close of evidence, U.S. District Judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan threw out claims that Lopez had been detained unlawfully, that the conditions of his confinement were unlawful and that detectives had intentionally inflicted emotional distress. In his decision, Der-Yeghiayan held that extraordinary circumstances existed for the extended detention of Lopez, who was arrested in 2000 in connection with the murder of a 12-year-old boy. The charges against Lopez in the case were soon dropped, and another man was arrested. Ordinarily, suspects can't be questioned for more than 48 hours without going before a judge. "The evidence clearly shows that it was Lopez himself who created the delays he now accuses the [police] for," the judge ruled. According to the judge, the Chicago teen lied about his identity, gave false alibis and admitted being the shooter before recanting.  [more]

• Lopez Complaint [PDF] Via ChicagoIMC