In a highly unusual move, former Gov. Pat Quinn has been subpoenaed to testify about a commutation
Former Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn has been subpoenaed in a federal civil rights case regarding his decision to commute the sentence of a man who served more than two decades in prison for the 1993 killing of a Chicago college basketball player. The move to compel a former governor to testify about the reasons behind a commutation or pardon is rare, possibly unprecedented, legal experts say.
The subpoena of Quinn comes in a federal civil case involving two men who served time in prison for murder, Tyrone Hood and Wayne Washington. Hood was convicted of the murder of 20-year-old Illinois Institute of Technology honor student Marshall Morgan Jr. and sentenced to 75 years in prison. Washington’s trial ended in a hung jury; he later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
The move to force Quinn to detail his commutation decision comes as part of a case that has been winding its way through the courts for years. On Thursday, Morgan’s father, Marshall Morgan Sr., a convicted murderer in another case and long considered a possible alternative suspect in this case, according to police files and court documents, appeared in federal court where a judge ruled he would have to sit for a deposition.
In their federal civil lawsuits, Hood and Washington accuse Chicago police officers of coercion, forcing a confession from Washington as well as embellished or false statements from witnesses. Lawyers for 11 former police officers accused of violating Hood and Washington’s rights are seeking Quinn’s testimony at a deposition and documents related to his decision, a move they argue is essential to defending their clients against false claims.
Read more: https://www.sj-r.com/news/20190923/in-highly-unusual-move-former-gov-pat-quinn-has-been-subpoenaed-to-testify-about-commutation
(Springfield State Journal Register)