Destroy/conceal/fabricate evidenceWitness manipulationFalse arrest or reportOther charges filed
Plaintiff:
Nathson E. Fields
Incident date:
06/14/1985
Allegations:
In June 1986, Nathson E. Fields, an El Rukn gang member, was convicted and sentenced to death for the double murder of rival gang members Talman Hickman and Jerome Smith, who had been shot and killed in a public housing complex. Fields spent almost 18 years on Death Row. In 1996, Fields' won an appeal based on his claim that he was denied due process. Fields was retried and acquitted. He was granted a Certificate of Innocence in December 2009. The Cook County State's Attorney and other defendants withheld evidence of Fields' innocence, used fabricated statements by Anthony Sumner, a member of the El Rukns and an informant, to convict Fields.