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Chicago Pays Exonerated Prisoners $7.5 Million, Bringing Total to $33.75 Million for Wrongful Convictions
Loaded on Jan. 1, 2026
by Chuck Sharman
published in Prison Legal News
January, 2026, page 37
Filed under:
Wrongful Conviction,
Bribery/Extortion/Theft,
Fabrication of Evidence,
Withholding of Exculpatory Evidence,
Withdrawal.
Location:
Illinois.
by Chuck Sharman
The Chicago City Council voted on January 15, 2025, to pay $7.5 million to Clarissa Glenn and her husband, Ben Baker, who spent 10 years in state prison on drug convictions obtained with planted evidence. Former Chicago Police Department (CPD) Sgt. Ronald Watts was the …
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More from this issue:
- Shadow Prisons: How Civil Commitment Leads to Longer Confinement, by Chuck Sharman
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Ninth Circuit Hands Partial Victory to NaphCare, Remanding Much of $27 Million Jury Verdict in Washington Jail Death Case, by Chuck Sharman
- The DOJ Orders Prison Inspectors to Drop LGBTQ+ Protections
- Class Certified in Challenge to Mailed Book Ban at Indianapolis Jail, by Chuck Sharman
- $450,000 Paid by Missouri County for Jail Detainee’s Death After 11 Days Without Medical Attention, by Chuck Sharman
- Study Finds Parole Hearings and Grants Continue to Fall, by Chuck Sharman
- HRDC Sues New Mexico County for Violating 10-Year-Old Settlement of Censorship Suit, by Chuck Sharman
- 2025 Was a Deadly Year for Veterans Behind Bars
- Fifth Circuit Rules Against Louisiana Prisoner Seeking to Recoup Money Made at Angola Prison Rodeo, by Douglas Ankney
- Massive $112 Million Jury Verdict for Detainees Held in New York Jail Past Release Date on ICE Detainers, by Chuck Sharman
- New York City Mayor’s Order Opening Rikers Island to ICE Declared Illegal, by Chuck Sharman
- $404,000 Verdict for Ohio Prisoner Brutalized by Trio of Guards, Kept in Solitary for Two Years, by Chuck Sharman
- Slender Man Stabber’s Escape Prompts “Serious Questions” for Wisconsin DOC
- Report on “Pay-to-Stay” Fees Makes Strong Case for Their Repeal, by Douglas Ankney
- Exonerated Former Prisoner Wins Election for Chief Record Keeper in New Orleans
- HRDC Sues Washington Jail for Rejecting PLN and Other Publications, by Chuck Sharman
- Maryland Agrees to Pay $30,000 to Prisoner Who Was Beaten by Guards While Handcuffed, by Douglas Ankney
- Eleventh Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Six Female Alabama Jail Detainees’ Sexual Assault Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity for Michigan Jailer Accused of Retaliatory Assault, by Chuck Sharman
- Almost $28.3 Million Awarded from NaphCare for Washington Jail Detainee Who Lost Leg to Untreated Gangrene, by Chuck Sharman
- Last of 16 Sentenced in California Prison Aryan Brotherhood Case, As Lawyer Learns He Was Targeted in Murder Plot, by Chuck Sharman
- New York City Jails Face Mounting Death Toll Ahead of Likely Receivership
- $2.75 Million Paid by Washington County and NaphCare for Death of “Floridly Psychotic” Detainee Left Untreated in Jail for Months, by Chuck Sharman
- New Jail in Oklahoma Is Costing More than Triple the Amount Voters Approved
- $200,000 for Detainee Thrown in “Rollover” Solitary Without Food or Water at Minnesota Jail, by Chuck Sharman
- Alabama Supreme Court Denies DOC’s Improper Venue Objection, by Douglas Ankney
- $4,652 for Jewish Nevada Prisoner Denied Passover Meal, by Chuck Sharman
- Oklahoma DOC Refuses to Publicly Release Body Camera Footage
- Georgia Bristles at Federal Law that Prohibits Drone Interceptions
- BOP Announces New Conditional Placement Date Calculation, by Chuck Sharman
- Arkansas Guards Can Now Work as Immigration Enforcers
- Chicago Pays Exonerated Prisoners $7.5 Million, Bringing Total to $33.75 Million for Wrongful Convictions, by Chuck Sharman
- Pennsylvania County and Wellpath Pay Over $1.4 Million to Settle Claims of Four Former Jail Detainees, Including Three Who Died by Suicide, by Chuck Sharman
- Guards in Los Angeles County Now Wearing Body Cameras
- Third Circuit Rules Awarding BOP Prisoners 54 Days of Good Time Per Year Is Pro-Rated, by Douglas Ankney
- Report Shows How Prison Gerrymanders Distort Democracy Across U.S., by Chuck Sharman
- $3.3 Million Verdict for Detainee’s Fatal Fentanyl Overdose in Southern California Jail, by Chuck Sharman
- Report Slams South Carolina Jail for Violating State Rules
- $939,000 for Nevada Prisoner Left in Wheelchair by Delayed Back Pain Treatment, by Anthony Accurso
- SCOTUS Hears Oral Arguments on Rastafarian Hair-Cutting Case, by Michael Thompson
- Wisconsin DOC Is Not Tracking Work Release Data
- $4 Million Paid to Former Rikers Island Detainee Whose Reports of Repeated Rapes Were Ignored, by Chuck Sharman
- U.S. District Court in Arizona Grants Summary Judgment in Favor of Prisoner Denial of Forms for Challenging 455 Days of Solitary, by Douglas Ankney
- Wisconsin Appeals Court Upholds Dismissal of Detainee’s Jail Food Lawsuit, by Michael Thompson
- Amnesty International Report Claims Torture and Enforced Disappearances at “Alligator Alcatraz”
- California Funds $38 Million Pilot Program to Investigate Methods for Cooling Three Prisons, by Matthew Clarke
- “We’re Broken”: As Federal Prisons Run Low on Food and Toilet Paper, Corrections Officers Are Leaving in Droves for ICE, by Keri Blakinger
- Labor Coalition in Minnesota Demands Disney Contractor Pay Prisoners Minimum Wage
- As California Limits Water Use, People in Prison Face Punishment for Showering, by Steve Brooks, Olivia Hefferman
- $600,000 Awarded So Far in Disgraced Georgia Sheriff’s Trial for Abusing Detainee in Restraint Chair, by Chuck Sharman
- Soaring Medical Costs in Washington Jails, by Michael Thompson
- How I Learned to Transcribe Braille in Prison, by Nathan Gray
- News in Brief
More from Chuck Sharman:
- L.A. County Begins Making Nearly $5 Billion in Payouts to Survivors of Sex Abuse in Juvenile Detention, Sept. 1, 2026
- Washington DOC Barred from Putting Prisoners on Lockdown and Calling It “Programming”, Sept. 1, 2026
- Florida DOC Rebuked for Seizing Prisoner’s Excessive Force Settlement to Cover Incarceration Liens, Sept. 1, 2026
- $100,000 Paid to Five Prisoners Assaulted by Centurion Gynecologist at Florida Lockup, Sept. 1, 2026
- “Nothing Short of Disgraceful”: New York Prisoner Wins Injunction Ordering Cancer Treatment Delayed Seven Years, Sept. 1, 2026
- HRDC Wins Injunction Against Minnesota DOC Policy Banning Its Publications, Sept. 1, 2026
- $280,000 Paid for South Carolina Detainee’s Death in Charleston Jail, Sept. 1, 2026
- $800,000 Settlement Reached in Hawai‘i Jail Suicide Case, Sept. 1, 2026
- $5.4 Million Jury Verdict Against Riverside County in Suit Over Jail Fentanyl Death, Sept. 1, 2026
- Atlanta Jail Begins Turning Away Misdemeanor Arrestees, Sept. 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- $11 Million Paid by Boston to Exonerated Prisoner for 37-Year Wrongful Incarceration, Sept. 1, 2026. Settlements, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Monell Liability, Withholding of Exculpatory Evidence.
- Buried in Plain Sight: How Digital Discovery Turns Disclosure Itself Into Concealment, Aug. 15, 2026. Videotaping, Suppression of Identity Evidence, Eyewitness Identification, Withholding of Exculpatory Evidence.
- Detroit Pays $5.8 Million to Former State Prisoner Exonerated of Murder After 15 Years, Aug. 1, 2026. Wrongful Conviction, Qualified Immunity, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Eyewitness Identification, Evidence - Failure to Disclose.
- $13 Million Awarded to Exonerated Illinois Prisoner Tortured to Confess by Corrupt Cops, Aug. 1, 2026. Police Misconduct, Wrongful Conviction, Certificate of Innocence, False Imprisonment, Confessions - Coerced.
- Louisiana Supreme Court Announces Framework Governing Factual Innocence Claims in First Application of La. C.Cr.P. Art. 926.2, Holding Second-Step Review Encompasses All Relevant Evidence, Aug. 1, 2026. Wrongful Conviction, Forensic Sciences, Actual Innocence/Claim of Innocence, Expert and Opinion Testimony, Scientific Testimony or Evidence.
- New Jersey Supreme Court Announces Brady and Carter Materiality Standards Differ, Holding Carter’s “Probably Change the Jury’s Verdict” Test for New Trial More Stringent Than Brady’s “Reasonable Probability” Standard, Aug. 1, 2026. New Trial/Judgment of Acquittal, Failure to Disclose, Evidence - Failure to Disclose, Brady/Giglio/Jencks Act Issues, Withholding of Exculpatory Evidence.
- Pennsylvania Supreme Court Announces Theft by Deception Is Not Continuing Offense While Receiving Stolen Property Continues Only Until Defendant Disposes of Stolen Property, Aug. 1, 2026. Bribery/Extortion/Theft, Lack of Evidence, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Statutes of Limitation and Laches.
- Conviction Tossed for Former Alabama Prisoner Paroled After 42 Years, July 1, 2026. Sex Offender Registration, Wrongful Conviction, Forensic Sciences, Eyewitness Identification, Brady Rule violations.
- BOP Supervisor in Colorado Indicted for Smuggling Over 400 Vapes, July 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, DOC/BOP misconduct, Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Bribery/Extortion/Theft.
- Rikers Island Captain Nicknamed “Terror of the Tombs” Indicted for Extortion, Wage Theft, July 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Threats by Staff, DOC/BOP misconduct, Bribery/Extortion/Theft, Fraud and Deceit.