A year after he was found not guilty of a 1990 double murder for which he spent three decades behind bars, Gerald Reed is suing the city and the officers he said tortured him into a false confession.
Officers working for former Chicago police Cmdr. Jon Burge subjected Reed to “two days of psychological and physical abuse” until he signed a confession implicating him in the murders of Pamela Powers and Willie Williams, according to the lawsuit.
The officers threatened Reed’s life, kicked and beat him, fracturing his right femur and causing permanent disability, according to the lawsuit.
Reed was convicted of the murders and sentenced to life in prison in 1994, but was granted a new trial after the Illinois Supreme Court threw out his oral and written confessions in 2021.
That same year, Gov. J.B. Pritzker commuted his life sentence to “time served,” finding he faced a serious health risk amid the spread of coronavirus in prison, and Reed was set free.
In May 2024, Cook County Judge Steven Watkins found Reed not guilty on all counts, following a four-day trial.
His attorney will now seek a certificate of innocence, which would make Reed eligible for nearly $200,000 from the state for his time spent in prison.
The lawsuit filed earlier this month in federal court also seeks damages, naming the city and dozens of current and former Chicago police officers as defendants, including Burge.
A spokeswoman for the city’s law department declined to comment on the litigation.
Over the years, federal lawsuits against Burge, who died in 2018, have cost the city about $130 million in legal settlements and judgments.
This year, the city has already burned through the $82 million Mayor Brandon Johnson set aside for settlements and judgments to cover all of 2025. On Wednesday, the City Council authorized seven additional settlements costing taxpayers $87.9 million more.
Johnson blamed his predecessors for refusing to confront the brutality that occurred in the Chicago Police Department in the 80s and 90s, telling reporters this week, “We’re not gonna kick the can down the road anymore.”