The
Law
Offices
of
HORWITZ,
RICHARDSON & BAKER,
LLC
represent seriously injured persons
and persons
whose lives have been affected by Police Misconduct.
Highly
skilled in the area of police brutality cases,
The Law
Offices
of
Blake
Horwitz
consults regularly in this field.
Mr. Horwitz has had many successes in the field of
Police Misconduct, including a:
Twenty Eight Million Dollars
($28,000,000) verdict!
this verdict was entered in a jury trial against the City of Chicago!
It has been proclaimed to be the largest police brutality verdict in the Midwest
Torture in
Chicago:
Some time
ago, police officers for the City of Chicago,
under the control and supervision of Commander
Jon Burge, used torture as a means to extract
"confessions" from innocent people the officers
arrested.
The officers
used many techniques; from the application of
electricity to putting a bag over the victim's
head, officers would torture people until they
said what the officers wanted them to say. Not
only does this practice violate the constitution
(Fourth, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments) but
innocent people went to jail, while the actual
perpetrators roamed the streets. At the Law
Office of Blake Horwitz, we are working on these
cases to vindicate the rights of those that
suffered under this regime.
Mr. Blake Horwitz ( Profile)
Mr. Horwitz, with years of litigation experience
from 1989, practices in both Federal and State courts and has a wealth
of experience in complex litigation as well as a savvy aptitude to win
on behalf of his clients.
A long time
legal advocate of individual rights, Mr. Horwitz has been recognized,
featured and consulted as an authority on civil rights litigation
through television, print and radio media, resulting in substantial
exposure from a wide variety of high-profile cases. |
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Caithamer v. Village of
Maywood.
$750,000 settlement for man beaten in jail by inmate.
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Medina v. City of Chicago
Largest settlement
($1,800,000 million) in Illinois for
police officers who placed highly intoxicated one handed man into back
of police squadrol for two hours, causing death.
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Brown v. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
$100,000.00 settlement for man who committed suicide
in Jail.
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Oviedo v. City of Joliet, et al
$100,000.00 jury verdict for Hispanic man who was
falsely arrested and criminally prosecuted for felony and misdemeanor
crimes.
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Johnson v. Village of Willowbrook
Largest police misconduct verdict for pat-down search
in Illinois: $112,000.00 for woman who was searched (over the clothes)
by two Caucasian police officers because she had expired license plates.
For
more information, please call
The Law Offices of Horwitz, Richardson & Baker LLC at:
312-676-2100
WRONGFUL
CONVICTIONS
Many people have been
charged with a crime, wrongfully. If police
officers had no legal basis for charging you with a
crime and you were found guilty, then you have been
wrongfully convicted. At the Law Offices of
Blake Horwitz, we prosecute police officers who have
wrongfully convicted innocent people.
Some Especially Interesting Cases
Presently Pending in the Office
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12 lawsuits filed against the City of Blue Island in one
day.
The Law offices of Blake Horwitz filed 12 lawsuits
against the city of Blue Island, alleging excessive force and false
arrest. This approach contributed to the cause of a dramatic reduction in
police misconduct in the community.
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12 Plaintiffs filed class action
lawsuit against the Village of Stone Park
Class action, on behalf of 900 men,
was filed against the Stone Park Police. The lawsuit alleges criminal RICO
violations against the police illegal
arrests that made just to generate
money for the village. The arrests concern false allegations that men
were soliciting a prostitute.
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Burns et al v. Minneapolis Police Department, et al.
Choked an African American man to death during an
arrest, while the man did not resist the officer.
A civil rights case consists of those
cases which protect the rights of people, where the rights are derived from
constitutional law. Many laws are created from local governments or from
judges. However, Civil Rights law flows from the U.S. Constitution. With
regards to civil rights, this internet cite concerns only those civil rights
which concern police misconduct also known, in some situations as Police
Brutality.
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What is a Police Misconduct Case?
Police officers, just like any human
being, make mistakes. Some of their errors are very serious and abusive, others
are just careless. The area of law concerning police misconduct concerns
situations like excessive force (an officer hurts someone unnecessarily), false
arrest and malicious prosecution. These are the most common cases that are
filed in the Court system.
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Excessive Force Cases
A police officer acts with excessive force
when he/she uses an amount of force with regards to a civilian that is more then
necessary. Police officers are certainly permitted to use force and in some
situations, deadly force. However, there are times when officers misuse their
authority and injure someone without a justified reason. For example, take a
situation where an officer stops an elderly gentleman for speeding. The officer
asks the driver to get out of the car and while the driver opens the car door,
the officer yanks him up from his seat and throws him against the car. This
would be an example of excessive force. As there would be no need to cause
injury to the driver of the car, the officer would be liable for using excessive
force (here, liable means legally responsible in a court of law for damages that
the driver suffers from officer’s abuse).
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False Arrest
Generally speaking, an arrest is defined
as any type of situation that you are involved in with an officer where you are
not free to leave. If you are under arrest, the next question that should then
be asked is what is the reason for the arrest. If the officer does not have a
valid reason for arresting you, then you may have a false arrest claim. Take
the following example. A police officer sees a young lad standing on the
corner, alone, minding his own business. The officer comes up to young man and
tells him that he must submit to a search (pat down search). The boy says no
and the officer tells him that he must submit. The boy again says no and the
officer forces him into the squad car and takes him down to the station. After
searching the boy at the station and checking his background, the officer
releases him. The young man has a valid false arrest claim. He was arrested
without any valid basis whatsoever and brought down into the station.
A valid federal claim and state law claim
could be pursued and won, assuming that these facts could be proven at trial.
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Malicious Prosecution
A malicious prosecution claim is similar
to a false arrest claim. In this type of case, the officer arrests an
individual for no valid reason and then initiates a criminal complaint against
the innocent person. Typical cases in this regard are Aggravated Battery
cases. Here, an officer for no good reason, strikes a civilian. The civilian
blocks the strike and hits back. The officer then tackles the civilian and
arrests him and charges him with striking the officer – known as Aggravated
Battery. After the criminal case is over (and preferably won) the innocent
civilian may lodge a civil rights case against the officer for excessive force,
false arrest and malicious prosecution.
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What if my case is not so clear cut?
Many people don’t understand what it takes
to win a police misconduct case. First, the law can be quite confusing.
Second, there is frequently a difference from what it is that can be proven as
opposed to what happened. For example, a police brutality case would be
stronger if there was an independent witness to observe an officers abuse.
Frequently, there are no witnesses and the case must be proven through other
means. Take, for example, the factual scenario of the gentleman (above) in the
excessive force case. If the police officer fails to detail anything in his
report to justify his actions and the driver goes to the emergency room for
injuries immediately after his interaction with the officer, then the case may
easily be proven. So, the most important thing to do when confronted with a
situation involving police misconduct is CONSULT A LAWYER. Don’t leave it to
your own decision making process to determine whether you would be able to win a
case in court. The law as well as the manner by which your case can be proven is
complicated. Get some free advice as you will be better off.
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E-mail us at:
Info@Police-Watchers.com
This page and other pages herein may
refer to certain legal concepts or principles. These concepts or principles are
primarily based upon what we believe to be the law in the State Of Illinois.
Laws of other states may differ. The law in Illinois and other states is in a
constant state of change. Therefore for these and other reasons the information
and opinions expressed in these are not intended and should not be taken as
legal opinions to be relied upon in any way by those who read these articles.
To come to a legal conclusion
relative to anything contained herein could seriously prejudice the rights of
the reader.
If the reader has a legal problem
relative to any of the matters discussed in this article or on this web site he
or she may seek an interview with this office or the advice of any other
attorney either directly or through their local bar association or legal aid.
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What are our fees?
If we choose to take your case, we usually do not charge a fee
unless we recover money for you. This is called a contingency
fee arrangement.
However, we may ask for a retainer fee to investigate your case
more fully in order to determine its probability of success in a
court of law. This fee is non-refundable, whether we ultimately
choose to take your case or not take your case. Also, there are
times when a client will pay the attorney in order to work on
the entire case.
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Regardless, of the situation
you are in, there is never a fee for your initial
consultation with us, whether by telephone or by answering the questionnaire on this website. |
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