CHICAGO — A former Chicago police commander convicted of lying about the torture of homicide suspects reported to federal prison in North Carolina on Wednesday.
Jon Burge, 63, the commander of the infamous “Midnight Crew” in the 1970s and ’80s, was sentenced to 4 1/2 years in January after being convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice.
Hours later in Chicago, a judge ordered 45-year-old Eric Caine released after prosecutors conceded they didn’t have enough evidence to convict Caine of murder again without the suspect confession he gave police in 1986.
Caine was convicted largely on the basis of his confession and statements made during police questioning by his co-defendant, Aaron Patterson, who also alleged his confession was coerced and who was sentenced to death.
The Associated Press
