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New Group Wants to Address Torture
The newly-formed Illinois Coalition Against Torture is looking to outlaw torture.

The group specifically aims to outlaw torture by police officers against suspects, which is a human rights violation in and of itself, and can produce false confessions. Lawyer Joey Mogul, a coalition member, says a charge of battery against rogue cops is insufficient, because it has a three-year statute of limitations, and law enforcement officials have ways of covering up torture and running out the clock that civilians do not have.

U.S. Rep. Danny K. Davis (D-Chicago) is introducing federal legislation to criminalize torture by law enforcement officials.

The coalition also seeks:

* Reparations for torture victims, which would include an apology, psychological counseling if needed, and a cash stipend.

* The release from prison of anybody who was convicted of a crime based on a confession that resulted from police torture. If it is not possible to exonerate these individuals, they should await new trials outside of jail, the coalition suggests.

The coalition presented its demands Tuesday morning at the federal courthouse in Chicago, where upstairs, the government is trying retired Chicago Police detective John Burge on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. Burge has been found in other court proceedings to have personally tortured suspects and to have led a group of detectives that did so.

(Illinois Radio Network)
06 01 10 by Newsroom
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