The Briefing Room
General Category => National/Breaking News => Topic started by: EC on March 10, 2014, 08:24:57 am
-
Yes, it's HuffPo: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/10/james-degorski-civil-suit_n_4932726.html
CHICAGO (AP) — A former handyman serving life in prison for the 1993 murder of seven people at a suburban Chicago restaurant has been awarded nearly a half-million dollars in a civil lawsuit in which he alleged a jail guard punched him in the face.
Victims' relatives Sunday criticized jurors' decision for James Degorski, who, with an accomplice, shot and stabbed two restaurant owners and five workers at Brown's Chicken and Pasta during a botched robbery. Their bodies were found in a walk-in cooler and freezer.
Degorski, now 41, accused a Cook County Jail guard of punching him and breaking his cheekbone and eye socket in 2002 — just after Degorski's arrest in what had been one of the most notorious, unsolved murder cases in Illinois history.
"If broken bones are worth a half-million, then how much are seven lives worth? This just doesn't feel right," said Ann Ehlenfeldt, a sister of Richard Ehlenfeldt, one of the owners who was killed.
But Degorski's attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, hailed the jury's decision, which came Friday after a three-day trial.
"I think it's a beautiful day for civil rights when a jury can put aside emotions and say we are all entitled to our civil rights," she said. "It's about protecting the constitutional rights of the least among us."
Despite the $451,000 award, it's not clear whether Degorski will ever see any of the money.
More at link.
Seriously? What are you guys even thinking? :shrug: