Former Chicago Mayor Richard Daley knew "shortly after the incident" that his nephew had been involved in the drunken fight that lead to the death of David Koschman but he, nor any of his contacts, did nothing to directly influence the investigation, a special prosecutor indicated in his report. But Dan Webbs report does suggest authorities who were keenly aware of the Daley family connection mismanaged the investigation into the 2004 brawl on Chicagos Division Street. "Whats very clear as you read this report is that no phone call needed to be made. Very early on the Chicago Police Department, whether by intuition or by experience of the realities of life in Cook County and the City of Chicago, got the message that this was no ordinary case," attorney Locke Bowman told reporters Tuesday after the report was made public. Webbs report had been ordered sealed until the trial of Richard J. "R.J." Vanecko, but the Daley nephew pleaded guilty last week for his role in the incident and avoided a trial. Hell serve 60 days in jail, followed by 60 days of home confinement, and must pay $20,000 in restitution. Timeline: David Koschman Case As part of the special prosecutors investigation, Daley said he didnt remember when he was notified of his nephews involvement, but both the investigating officer, Det. Ronald Yawger, and Thomas Epach, the executive assistant to then-police Supt. Phil Cline, in 2004 tried to persuade the Cook County States Attorneys Office to approve a charge of involuntary manslaughter. The head of Felony Review, Darren OBrien, "could not be persuaded to do so," the report states. "What happened here was an investigation that was treated as a political football from Day One," Bowman said. "[David Koschmans mother Nanci Koschman] was left in the sidelines in the dark while police and prosecutors focused on covering themselves from allegations that they might be responsible for criminally charging a Daley family member." Webbs report details missing files from both the police department and the states attorneys office. When Vanecko was indicted by Webb, States Attorney Anita Alvarez said her office had previously convened a grand jury to investigate. But according to Webbs report, prior to his appointment, Alvarezs office had "presented one witness and one statement of a witness." During the 2011 reinvestigation, members of Daleys staff met with police officers and said they expected to be be "closed soon." In a press release accompanying Tuesdays release, Webb said "there was no evidence that former Mayor Daley, his family, or others at their direction engaged in conduct to influence or attempted to influence, the investigations which [the Chicago Police Department] and [the Cook County States Attorneys Office] conducted in connection with the Koschman matter." "Whats very clear as you read this report is that no phone call needed to be made," said Bowman. "Very early on the Chicago Police Department, whether by intuition or by experience of the realities of life in Cook County and the City of Chicago, got the message that this was no ordinary case." "I think that its fair to conclude here, as Mr. Webb chose not to, that in fact that this was an example of supreme clout and that the Koschman family would have gotten justice a decade ago if it werent for who threw the punch and whose family that puncher came from," he added. Daley, the citys longest-serving mayor, left office in 2011. Koschman, who was 21 at the time, was knocked down and struck his head after being punched on the street. Fueled by reports from NBC Chicago and the Chicago Sun-Times, questions were raised about whether clout caused Cook County prosecutors and Chicago police to mishandle the original investigation. Koschmans family claimed there was a cover-up. Webb wrote that when re-examining the cases handling, he primarily looked at whether one of four laws had been broken: official misconduct, obstructing justice, conspiracy, and tampering with public records. Because each has a three-year statute of limitations, none could have been applied to the handling of the original 2004 investigation, he wrote, also citing a lack of potentially vital evidence, including emails and cellphone records. And while reopened investigations in 2011 and 2012 were not subject to the statute of limitations, the report concluded that charges couldnt be filed against any of the investigators. "The Special Prosecutor does not believe he could prove beyond a reasonable doubt by legally sufficient evidence at trial that any employee of (the Chicago police) or (prosecutors office) acted with the requisite criminal intent ... to violate Illinois law," it said. Still, Bowman said he hopes the new light shed on the case turns it into a "teachable moment," and said further accountability is needed. "The Koschman investigation cries out for an examination on the part of people who care about justice in the city of Chicago," he said. "Somebody needs to get on top of this and heads need to roll."
Posted on: Tue, 04 Feb 2014 20:06:50 +0000
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