CRIMINAL JUSTICE

We do not stand by in silence in the face of the racism and inequality that permeate our criminal justice system. For decades, our lawyers have fought injustice and in 2021, we were proud to free an innocent man convicted of murder and reduce “grossly disproportionate” prison sentences.

Freeing the Falsely Convicted

For 16 years, Jenner & Block partner David Jiménez-Ekman represented pro bono client Ken Smith through a second trial, a direct appeal, a third trial, another direct appeal, and a federal habeas petition before securing Mr. Smith’s release from prison for a murder and armed robbery he did not commit.

The charges against Mr. Smith stemmed from a botched armed robbery in McHenry, Illinois. In March 2001, the owner of a burrito shop was shot to death after he chased two armed, masked robbers out of his store carrying a knife.

Mr. Smith was convicted, even though the state had no physical evidence linking him to the crime – no fingerprints at the scene, no DNA evidence, and no blood that could be linked to him. Instead, the state’s case was built on the ‘confession’ of an alleged co-conspirator, which had three glaring shortcomings. First, it was procured after police falsely told the alleged co-conspirator that his friends had already confessed and implicated him. Second, the confession was riddled with major inaccuracies that demonstrated no knowledge of the crime. And third, the confession was force-fed through leading questions.

As Mr. Smith’s appeals and retrials proceeded through the judicial system, evidence emerged showing the crime was committed by three other individuals completely unrelated to him. David and his team put on evidence that those other individuals confessed – unprompted – numerous times to friends, family, and police; they knew details about the crime that had never been made public; and there was physical evidence corroborating those confessions. The other individuals were seen with cuts and scrapes in the days after the crime, they were connected with a gun that matched the characteristics of the bullets recovered from the victim, and they were riding around in a car on the night of the crime that was later found burned in a field with the help of an accelerant. However, the court excluded other compelling evidence, and – having heard only part of the story – the jury convicted Mr. Smith for a third time after deliberating for three days (reportedly a record in McHenry County).

In granting a new trial based on Mr. Smith’s habeas petition in 2020, federal Judge Andrea Wood wrote that she was “confounded as to how the evidence could not give a rational jury reasonable doubt as to Mr. Smith’s guilt” and that she was “concerned that a serious miscarriage of justice has occurred here.”

After the State appealed Mr. Smith’s habeas victory and he cross-appealed asking for release without possibility of retrial, the Seventh Circuit court rebuked the appellate court for affirming Ken’s third conviction. The Seventh Circuit stated, “With such a serious possibility of a third party’s guilt, we are convinced…that no rational trier of fact could have found Smith guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and that the Illinois Appellate Court was not just wrong, but unreasonable, in holding otherwise.” The Seventh Circuit ordered Ken’s immediate and unconditional release with no possibility of retrial.

After 19 years in prison, Mr. Smith was released from Lawrence Correctional Center on May 6, 2021.

Attorneys on the case included: Partners David Jimenez-Ekman, Katharine McLaughlin, John Storino, and Gregory Boyle; Associate Elena Olivieri; and former associate Emma O’Connor. Paralegal Chris Ward assisted.

Reducing “Stupendously Long” Sentences

For three men serving sentences described as “grossly disproportionate,” “devoid of true fairness,” and “stupendously long,” Jenner & Block’s life-changing pro-bono work resulted in a commutation and two reduced sentences under the First Step Act.

For Robert Rollins, Jenner & Block’s success in reducing his sentence means that he will be free in a couple of years, instead of dying in prison. At the age of 25, Mr. Rollins was convicted of three robberies within a week’s time and under a mandatory sentencing scheme was sentenced to 106.5 years in prison. Jenner & Block joined with Debevoise & Plimpton to file a motion to reduce his sentence under the First Step Act. In reducing Mr. Rollins’ sentence to 28 years and one day, the judge noted his clean prison disciplinary record, work as a cook in prison, and participation in a course helping inmates appreciate the severity of their crimes and the impact on the victims.

Tracy Conley was invited by an acquaintance to join a group that he thought would be doing home repair. It turned out the others in the group had agreed to rob a fictional drug “stash house” that was part of an elaborate government sting operation – there was no drug stash house, only a plot invented by government agents to ensnare area citizens. Ms. Conley was convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison, even though evidence later emerged that the government’s selection of targets for these sting operations was racially motivated and the government abandoned the program in the face of growing public criticism. The judge who granted the petition for compassionate relief we filed for Mr. Conley and ordered him released from prison five years early stated his sentence served “no real purpose other than to destroy any vestiges of respect in our legal system and law enforcement that this defendant and his community may have had.”

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker commuted the remaining 16 years of Tarrence Thompson’s sentence for armed robbery with a firearm. Mr. Thompson was sentenced to 25 years in prison – four more years than the Illinois statutory minimum – even though the alleged victim was a longtime friend who testified at trial that Mr. Thompson did not rob him and never had a gun. Shortly before his release, the Jenner & Block team was also critical in ensuring that Mr. Thompson received adequate medical care when he fell into a diabetic coma and subsequently developed COVID-19 while in a hospital intensive care unit. Today, Mr. Thompson has a job as a security guard and relishes eating his wife’s cooking and waking up early to make breakfast for his grandchildren.

The US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and the Chicago Chapter of the Federal Bar Association awarded Ms. Conley and Mr. Rollins’ legal teams with the 2021 Award for Excellence in Pro Bono Service for “providing outstanding pro bono and public interest representation…before the district court.” Mr. Rollins’ team included Partners Andrew Vail and Monica Pinciak, Associate Joshua Levin, and paralegal Katherine Mehaffie. Partner Michael Brody, Associates Eric Fleddermann and Theo Lesczynski, and former associate Leigh Jahnig represented Ms. Conley.

Attorneys for Mr. Thompson include Partners Jeffrey Colman and Jason Bradford; Associates Andrew Csoros, Brian Druchniak, and Reanne Zheng; and legal assistants Kathy Tock and Brenda Carey. Associate Mark Reinhardt, Special Counsel Jenny Beach, paralegals Nick Perrone and Kevin Garcia, and former partner Rachel Morse and former associate Samantha Glass provided valuable assistance.

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Above: Tarrence Thompson (lower right) celebrated his release on Zoom after Jeffrey Colman (top left), Brian Druchniak (top right) and Jason Bradford (lower left) secured the commutation of the last 16 years of his sentence.

Partnering for Justice

Kensley “Sonny” Hawkins spent more than 39 years in prison for armed robbery and a murder conviction based on the conduct of his co-defendant, until a partnership between Jenner & Block and Illinois Prison Project’s pro bono program secured his release in April, 2021.

One of ten children, Mr. Howkins dropped out of high school and enlisted in the Army as a cook to help support his mother and siblings. While serving, he earned his GED and parachute badge and was awarded the National Defense Service Medal. After leaving the Army, he enrolled at Chicago State University and studied electrical engineering, but once again dropped out to support his family.

Distraught following the suicide of his brother and under financial strain, Mr. Hawkins agreed to be the get-away driver of a van used in a gas station robbery. The van was later traced back to a person who was killed before the robbery, leading to Mr. Hawkins’ murder conviction based on his co-defendant’s actions under the controversial theory of accountability.

Mr. Hawkins developed trade skills by working throughout his incarceration, starting as an upholsterer and cabinet maker at Stateville Furniture Factory. With his knack for engineering, he was promoted to “lead worker” at the factory and then ran the “Set Up” department at the Shawnee Metal Factory. Mr. Hawkins was recognized throughout his incarceration for his service and high-quality work.

The Illinois Prison Project advocates against extraordinarily long prison sentences and supports mid-sentence reviews. One of IPP’s principles is “No one is their worst act,” embracing the power of rehabilitation as central to meaningful criminal justice reform and recognizing that people improve, learn, and evolve.

Jenner & Block Department Counsel Lisa Schoedel advocated for Mr. Hawkins through Illinois Prison Project’s pro bono program, and her dedication paid off when Governor Pritzker’s office notified her that the remainder of his sentence was commuted and Mr. Hawkins was released from Shawnee Correctional Center. Mr. Hawkins, whose age and medical conditions made him especially vulnerable to COVID-19, is now home with his devoted daughter, Romonia, and working at a company that makes custom cabinetry and metal works.