CHICAGO-
An AIDS activist and former city of Chicago health department employee was sentenced to 15 years in prison Wednesday for running over a cabdriver with his own taxi.
Cook County Circuit Court Judge James M. Schreier sentenced Michael Jackson after a hearing that lasted several hours. With credit for good behavior, Jackson, 38, could be released in seven to eight years, said Cook County state’s attorney spokeswoman Marcy O’Boyle.
A jury found Jackson guilty last month of second-degree murder in the death of Haroon Paryani, 62, but acquitted him of first-degree murder and aggravated criminal hijacking charges.
Jackson was accused of running over Paryani last year during a dispute about an $8 cab fare. Witnesses said Jackson drove the cab over Paryani three times.
Defense attorneys had argued that Paryani was hostile and Jackson got behind the wheel of the cab because he feared for his life.
Jackson was a specialist with the city Department of Public Health’s division on sexually transmitted diseases. He was also founder and former president of the Hearts Foundation, which raises money to help AIDS victims.
Jackson’s attorney, Thomas M. Breen, was not immediately available for comment Wednesday.
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