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In an ongoing saga imbued with riveting legal dimensions, Gerald Reed was acquitted on Wednesday for the murder charges of a man and woman on Chicago’s South Side dating back over twenty years ago.
Reed’s ill-fated journey through the justice system began in 1994 when a court convicted him for the deaths of Pamela Powers and Willie Williams, delivering a life sentence swiftly. However, a turn of events followed nearly three decades later in 2021 when the Illinois Supreme Court nullified Reed’s confessions, both oral and written, citing certain irregularities, and ordered a fresh trial.
In the same year, Illinois Governor, J.B. Pritzker,considering Reed’s vulnerable health amidst the pandemic in the penitentiary, changed Reed’s life sentence for the murders to “time served”. Emerging from the steel jaws of prison, Reed, however, was far from free. The 1990 murders remained a looming specter as the pardon did not deter prosecutors from retrying him.
The retrial spanned four days and played out before Cook County Judge Steven Watkins. Reed’s defense attorney, Elliot Zinger, vehemently emphasized the absence of physical evidence – neither DNA nor fingerprints, linking his defendant to the horrendous crimes. Furthermore, Zinger alleged two key testimonials against Reed from the initial trial were fabricated.
Reed’s defense painted a picture where evidence was based solely on speculation. Reed himself claimed he was violently attacked by a detective who kicked him so hard, it broke a medical rod inserted in his leg due to a prior gunshot wound. This grievance was posed before the Illinois Torture Inquiry and Relief Commission, who upon evaluation, deemed Reed’s claim credible.
And ultimately, on Wednesday, Judge Watkins declared Reed innocent on all charges.
Had Reed been found guilty, incarceration was off the table given he had served his time already- a point reiterated by his defense attorney. Zinger now plans to seek a “certificate of innocence” from the court. The successful procurement of this certification would entitle Reed to a hefty compensation approximating $200,000 from state funds, nullifying his wrongfully served prison tenure.
“I’ve been at this for 12 years,” confessed Zinger, who involved co-counsel Larry Dreyfus on the case. “It’s been a long, long process to get vindication.”
Through shifts in legal stances, confounding confessions, procedural deviations, and subsequent interrogations – all served to prolong Reed’s struggle for justice. The case brings to light glaring issues in the justice system and reinforces the importance of incorruptible forensic evidence in the decision-making process. While the saga of Gerald Reed ends with his acquittal, it sparks conversations on the countless innocents fighting for their truth in the complex world of true crime.
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