State Set To Pay Wrongfully Convicted Former Inmates

[lizzi0067]

STATE SET TO PAY WRONGFULLY CONVICTED FORMER INMATES

[Sat Mar 06 2004]


SPRINGFIELD (AP) -- More than $1 million is going to nine wrongfully convicted former inmates pardoned by former Gov. George Ryan under a law signed by Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

Blagojevich signed the bill into law on Friday that called for more than $280 million in supplemental spending, including provisions some Republicans criticize as pork-barrel spending during the state's budget crisis.

Ryan emptied death row before leaving office in January 2003, pardoning four men he believed were innocent and commuting the death sentences of 167 others to life in prison. Flaws in Illinois' death penalty system have been in the spotlight since 2000, when Ryan halted executions after 13 men on death row were found to have been wrongly convicted.

Two of the inmates he pardoned at the time on the grounds of innocence will receive the most money. Madison Hobley, who was sentenced to death for setting a 1987 fire that killed his wife, son and five others in Chicago, will receive $161,000.

Leroy Orange will receive $160,000. He had been convicted of fatally stabbing three adults and a child in Chicago in 1984. The day before the House passed the bill in early February, he was charged with selling crack cocaine.

Sen. Jeffrey Schoenberg, who championed the bill, said he learned from Orange's attorney that the former inmate was struggling financially.

"There was no justifiable reason one way or the other why those who had their lives ruined by wrongful convictions had to wait further for the state to provide some modest compensation for the years unnecessarily spent on death row," Schoenberg said.

The money will be issued by the end of June, said Becky Carroll, a spokeswoman for Blagojevich's budget office.

Among those who were pardoned by Ryan and will receive payments ranging from $60,150 to $138,000 include Steven Linscott, who was convicted of killing an Oak Park woman; Gary Gauger who was sentenced to death for killing his parents in McHenry County and Paula Gray, whose perjured testimony helped convict the Ford Heights Four. That case involved four men who were wrongfully convicted of the gang rape and double murder of a suburban Chicago couple.

Under state law, anyone wrongly incarcerated and pardoned by the governor is eligible for a settlement paid by the Court of Claims to compensate them for their time in prison.

Carroll said she did not know why the two other inmates pardoned by Ryan just before he left office -- Aaron Patterson and Stanley Howard -- did not receive money. But last year's budget did include $161,500 for Patterson. Howard remains incarcerated and is serving time for rape, kidnapping and other charges unrelated to the case for which he was pardoned.

Supporters defend the $280 million price tag on the overall legislation, but Republicans question it, pointing to several projects including $1 million for the Illinois Arts Council.

The council is headed by Shirley Madigan, wife of House Speaker Michael Madigan, a Chicago Democrat.



This story viewable online at: http://www.thesouthern.com/rednews/2...op/TOP002.html

[Rostonhall]

Please note this only applies to those who have received a pardon from the Governor. Anyone found wrongfully convicted by the appeal courts isn't entitled to compensation, even though they may have been in prison for decades!!

Rose

[jimsenglishgeek]

And some states have no provisions whatsoever. Nicky Yarris over in Pennsylvania is struggling. Amnesty International promised to send him financial help but has done nothing as of yet.

[CET]

I am happy to hear this news, but it seems it should apply to all exonerated inmates. I met Gary Gauger last month at our forum against the death penalty!
I am starting to do some brain storming on businesses to start for when my own family members are out.

[softheart]

Jim I speak with Nicky almost every day and no he got nothing from PA, but even if they would have offered he would not have taken it. Because they will never offer him enough to give back what they have taken from him. And accepting it would take other opitions open to him away.

He also is doing a lot of speaking and working on some other deals. He also is working a private job, yes he is struggling to make it, but he is making it. He is very fortunate to have his parents there to help him.

There are only 16 States that offer any kind of compensation for people who have been exonararted.

Right now Nicky and some lawyers are working on getting legistation passed that would help exonarated inmates in PA.

softie

[Rostonhall]

It really does stink that, no matter how long someone has been wrongly locked away, they walk out with nothing. Tony just wants his freedon, he's not worried about compencsation, freedom is all that matters but he doesn't seem to realize or, at least, doesn't think about how he's going to live!! He's probably not allowing himself to think further than walking through those gates, exonerated, but after spending more than 20 years in prison, 19 of those facing death, he, and everyone else who's innocent, should expect something. Tony insists that no amount of money can give him back the life he lost, and I suspect everyone feels like that after having their convictions overturned.

Rose

[felion]

$160,000 for ALL those years in prison! Burg got more than that for his retirement pension and he tortured and did terrible things to a lot of them still iincacerated while he lives it up in Florida!!!