Denying Innocence
Prosecutors in Cook County — the nation’s leader in known wrongful convictions — have vowed to address the wrongs of the past. But Injustice Watch found prosecutors across multiple administrations have brushed aside compelling innocence claims, failed to investigate police abuse allegations, and compounded the suffering of wrongfully convicted people.
Explore the project
Part 1
Cook County’s conviction integrity unit repeatedly denied freedom to incarcerated people who were later cleared
Despite its celebrated record of exonerating more people than any comparable unit nationwide, an Injustice Watch investigation found 21 people who were denied relief by the group before flawed evidence later led to their exonerations.
Part 2
Cook County’s new prosecutor has weakened an already broken system for freeing the innocent
State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke’s Conviction Integrity Unit hasn’t exonerated anyone in her 10 months on the job, and she has done little to confront more than a dozen coercion allegations against a former Chicago police detective and his partners.
Part 3
Cook County prosecutor fights to block exonerated people from clearing their names
Certificates of innocence can help exonerated people get jobs and housing. State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke is making them harder to get.
More reporting
Illinois bill and court ruling could help more people move on after wrongful convictions
Days after an appeals court ruled that some people should automatically get certificates of innocence, state legislators passed a bill to raise compensation for wrongful convictions.
Project Contributors
Reporting by Dan Hinkel
Editing by David Kidwell, Jonah Newman, and Michael Barajas
Illustrations by Veronica Martinez
Photos by Abel Uribe and Taylor Glascock