Wrongful conviction settlement advances
The Chicago City Council Finance Committee has approved a $25 million legal settlement that would be paid to two men wrongly convicted of a 1993 murder.
Wayne Washington and Tyrone Hood both sued the city after spending years in prison for a murder they said they didn’t commit. Their lawyers said detectives fabricated evidence and coerced testimony to get a conviction. The two men were later found innocent in court.
The settlement now goes before the city council for consideration.
Rodeo hit with restraining order
A popular rodeo in Joliet has been issued a temporary restraining order after an animal rights group reported possible animal abuse.
WGN reports the group Showing Animals Respect and Kindness, or SHARK, approached the Will County State’s Attorney’s Office with a video that showed a steer suffering a leg injury during a Labor Day rodeo act. There was also evidence of an electric prod being used on animals’ heads.
The office said the Horseman Association Club of the North of Joliet did not follow the Humane Care of Animals Act.
Auto workers’ vehicles vandalized
Nearly two dozen employees at the Ford Assembly Plant on Chicago’s south side had their cars broken into and vandalized. At least 13 vehicles were vandalized over the weekend.
Early Friday, workers said more than 30 cars were vandalized. UAW Local 551 said the issue is being addressed by Chicago police and the Ford Motor Company.