Innocent man represented by UIS Illinois Innocence Project receives pardon 30 years after wrongful convictions

The IIP argued Propst's case before the Illinois Prisoner Review Board in 2019.

The Illinois Innocence Project at the University of Illinois Springfield is pleased to announce that its client Norman Propst, who was wrongfully convicted twice – in 1991 and 1997 – in Cook County has been pardoned, based on actual innocence, by Gov. JB Pritzker. 

“We are thrilled that the Governor has granted clemency to Norman Propst for these wrongful convictions,” said Propst’s attorney John Hanlon, executive director of the Illinois Innocence Project. “So many unjust convictions have occurred to innocent young Black men in Chicago. Unfortunately, Norman suffered for that reality. We are, however, so proud of the unselfish and successful way that he has devoted himself to his community since he left Chicago. It’s really quite a story.”

Propst was convicted of a 1990 robbery based on a notoriously unreliable eyewitness identification, i.e. a “show-up” procedure. He was also convicted of a workplace theft in 1997 even though his managers insisted no crime had occurred. One of those managers then resigned her position in support of Propst. 

Kaylan Schardan, a second-year law student at St. Louis University School of Law, also performed instrumental work toward Propst’s pardon when she volunteered for the Project in 2019. Under the direction of Hanlon, she researched and co-wrote Propst’s petition requesting a gubernatorial pardon based on strong evidence of Propst’s innocence. She then co-argued the petition in front of the Illinois Prisoner Review Board in fall 2019.

“Working on Norman’s case with the Illinois Innocence Project not only gave me valuable legal experience but also allowed me to meet wonderful people like him,” Schardan said. “Norman has waited decades to clear his name. I am honored to be a part of his journey toward justice. My time with the Project showed me the great need for post-conviction legal advocates. It's not easy work, but it is the most rewarding.”

in 1990, Propst was wrongfully accused by Chicago police and wrongfully convicted of robbery. Knowing he was facing a sentence of 15 years and his mother was suffering from serious health issues, he made the difficult decision to accept a plea deal to avoid the trauma of further court proceedings. He served several months in the Cook County jail followed by four years’ probation. 

In 1997, Propst was charged with retail theft concerning a book that was taken from a Borders Bookstore where he was employed. He maintained his innocence but ultimately pled guilty and received six months' supervision in order to avoid further proceedings regarding the matter. According to the National Registry of Exonerations, 20% of exonerations nationwide involve guilty pleas.

Propst has focused his life on helping others while trying for decades to clear his name. He co-founded the Atlanta chapter of Black Lives Matter and the Alliance for Black Lives, a social ‘injustice’ activist organization in Atlanta fighting racism, poverty and militarism. In partnership with the Gwinnett County commissioners, Propst played a leading role in securing their vote in January to remove a confederate monument in Lawrenceville, Georgia.

As a community organizer, he works with homeless and social justice organizations; speaks at public schools; advocates for LGBTQ rights, mental health awareness and the “Fight for $15” minimum wage movement; and advocates against gun violence, voter suppression and police brutality.

“The important thing in Norman’s case is not just about the time he served; rather, it’s about the fact that he now will have the ability to go to college, get a degree in social work and then get a job helping kids improve their lives,” Hanlon said. “That has been his life’s dream. He could not do any of those things with these convictions hanging over him. He has already done incredible work in his community, but now he can greatly enhance that without the legal and practical burdens posed by the wrongful convictions.”

UIS' Illinois Innocence Project helps free man who was wrongfully convicted of murder

Nathaniel Onsrud walks out of the Menard Correctional Center in Chester, Illinois on June 23, 2020, with Chrissy Ferree from the Illinois Innocence Project.

A Rock Island County man’s 2008 murder conviction was vacated and he walked free from the Menard Correctional Center on June 23, 2020, due to the efforts of the Illinois Innocence Project (IIP) at the University of Illinois Springfield and attorneys of Erickson & Oppenheimer, Ltd. (EO) in Chicago. Newly discovered evidence proves that Nathaniel Onsrud was not responsible for the death of his infant son.

Onsrud’s conviction was vacated after it was discovered that exculpatory documents were not disclosed to defense counsel that provided additional evidence that Onsrud is innocent. The Rock Island County State’s Attorney’s Office supported the request of IIP and EO to vacate Onsrud’s conviction and release him immediately.

“Our client, Nathaniel Onsrud, maintained from day one he had nothing to do with the tragic death of his infant son,” said IIP Chicago Legal Director Lauren Kaeseberg. “For the past 13 years, Nathaniel has fought to clear his name and has been through the unimaginable ordeal of losing his baby and then being wrongfully convicted of murdering him. We are so thankful that the State’s Attorney of Rock Island County has acted in the interests of justice and that we can bring Nathaniel home today.”

In May 2007, Onsrud’s four-month-old son, Dax, who had been born 10 weeks premature and had significant medical complications, became unresponsive while in Nathaniel’s care. After emergency medical treatment at home, Dax was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead a short time later.

Initial medical examinations did not reveal foul play and the forensic pathologist brought in to consult on the case was reluctant to determine the death was a homicide. After investigators focused on Onsrud, they had multiple meetings with the pathologist to devise a new (yet erroneous) theory – that he had caused Dax’s death. Onsrud was subjected to two interviews and finally, after continual questioning, made some ambiguous statements that the investigators determined was a “confession.” Ultimately, based in large part on this “confession,” Onsrud’s defense attorney at the time encouraged him to plead guilty.

False confessions played a role in the wrongful conviction of 96 individuals in Illinois – nearly 30 percent of Illinois’ 331 exonerations since 1989, according to the National Registry of Exonerations.

“To call this an injustice is a colossal understatement,” said Michael Oppenheimer of Erickson & Oppenheimer. “This was a grotesque, coordinated effort by corrupt cops, an unscrupulous and malicious prosecutor and a dishonorable medical examiner. They worked together, for the sake of their own careers – far outside all bounds of the law – to destroy an innocent man and his family forever.”

“However, I would like to commend the current Rock Island State’s Attorney, Dora Villarreal, for her dedicated leadership role in working to right this horrible wrong,” Oppenheimer added.

Nathaniel Onsrud is one of approximately 100 innocent Illinoisans whose cases have been reversed after they pled guilty, according to the National Registry of Exonerations.

“Our criminal justice system is fundamentally broken and we see that in large part in guilty pleas, where a vast number of people, once they are trapped in the system, take pleas to avoid hefty sentences threatened by the State,” said Kaeseberg.

In addition, Onsrud’s case is the latest example of the reversal of cases nationwide in which faulty science was used to convict innocent people where no crime had actually occurred.

Onsrud is the 16th client of the Illinois Innocence Project to be released or exonerated.

Read Rock Island State’s Attorney Dora Villarreal's press release about Onsrud's release.

Innocent man represented by UIS Illinois Innocence Project receives executive clemency 23 years after his death in prison

The Illinois Innocence Project at the University of Illinois Springfield is pleased to announce that Grover Thompson, who was wrongfully convicted in 1981 and died in prison in 1996, has received executive clemency based on actual innocence by former Gov. Bruce Rauner. This is the first posthumous exoneration to occur in Illinois and only the 21st such exoneration nationwide, as documented by the National Registry of Exonerations.

“We applaud Gov. Rauner for bringing justice to an innocent man who had no chance to fight for himself,” said John Hanlon, executive director of the Illinois Innocence Project. “We also applaud members of Illinois law enforcement who recognized Grover’s innocence years ago and, with incredible involvement and devotion, fought with us to clear Grover’s name 23 years after his death.”

Lt. Paul Echols (retired), of the Carbondale, Illinois Police Department, was instrumental in uncovering Thompson’s innocence. While investigating several cold case murders in Carbondale, Lt. Echols along with Detective Jimmy Smith, of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, obtained a confession from serial rapist and murderer Tim Krajcir for the crime Thompson was wrongfully convicted of committing.

The case caught the attention of two Southern Illinois University (SIU) School of Law students working for the Illinois Innocence Project. In 2011, Thompson’s nephew, S.T. Jamison, and the Illinois Innocence Project filed an Executive Clemency Petition with the Illinois Prisoner Review Board asking for Thompson’s posthumous exoneration. No one opposed the petition. In December 2015, Gov. Rauner denied Thompson’s exoneration without explanation.

“Grover’s case is the poster child of injustice,” said Lt. Echols. “In my 28 years as a police officer and 10 years as a criminal justice professor, this was the most disturbing case of injustice I have ever seen. I’m proud to have been part of the team that finally found justice for Grover.”

In 1981, 46-year-old Thompson, a black man, was traveling by bus to visit family in Mississippi and stopped to rest in a Mount Vernon, Illinois, post office lobby. At the same time, Krajcir, a white man sometimes mistaken for a dark-complexioned man, broke into 72-year-old Ida White’s home and stabbed her repeatedly while she resisted his attempts to rape her.  

The police quickly set their sights on Thompson after a neighbor reported a black man fleeing the scene. Despite that, Thompson, who was found sleeping in the post office across the street, could not have committed the crime due to a disability and was not wearing clothing that fit the description of the attacker. He was arrested, convicted and sentenced to 40 years in prison.

“Uncle Grover suffered a tragedy that never should have happened,” said S.T. Jamison, Grover’s nephew, from his home in Minnesota. “He was an innocent black man just trying to get home to his family and he never came home.”

“I am thrilled beyond words that his innocence has finally been acknowledged,” he said. “I thank the good people of the Illinois Innocence Project and God for justice for my dear Uncle Grover. I also am grateful to Gov. Rauner. I and my family members are unspeakably elated!”

Posthumous exonerations are extremely rare. Of the 2,363 exonerations documented since 1989 by the National Registry of Exonerations, only 20 are posthumous. Ten of those posthumous exonerations are of individuals, like Thompson, who died in prison.

“We’ve learned about the many reasons wrongful convictions happen, including tunnel vision and witness misidentification,” said Brandon Klages, a UIS senior and student worker at the Illinois Innocence Project. “Grover’s case is an example of how police can build a case around an innocent person because of their race and class, instead of allowing the evidence to lead the way.”

Lt. Echols details Thompson’s story in chapter 21 (titled “Another Victim”) of his book “In Cold Pursuit: My Hunt for Timothy Krajcir – The Notorious Serial Killer.” All proceeds from the book support the Nine Angels Memorial Scholarship at Southern Illinois University, named for the victims of Krajcir.

“I am very pleased Grover’s family finally has closure, confirming what they knew so many years ago, that Grover did not commit this crime,” said Lt. Echols, who received the Illinois Innocence Project’s “Defender of the Innocent” award in 2018 for his commitment to bringing justice to Thompson. “This closes another chapter in the sad stories caused by Krajcir. May Grover now rest in peace.”

UIS Illinois Innocence Project client who spent 22 years in prison acquitted after new trial in DuPage Co. arson murder case

A DuPage County judge found William (Bill) Amor not guilty of arson murder today. Amor, a client of the Illinois Innocence Project at the University of Illinois Springfield, served 22 years in prison for a crime he did not commit.

The victory comes after two weeks of testimony between January 24 and February 2, 2018, at which attorneys presented new arson-related scientific evidence in the 1995 Naperville arson case. Similar testimony resulted in Judge Liam Brennan vacating the initial conviction in April 2017. Amor was released from custody in May of 2017 and has been free on bond.

The Amor case is believed to be the first of its kind in the state of Illinois, where a court issued an official finding that modern fire science is “new science” under the legal definition of “newly-discovered evidence” entitling an innocent person to a new trial.

Upon his acquittal, Amor said, "This is the end of a nightmare for me. I have fought to clear my name for the last 22 years and I am so grateful that I was able to have my day in court for the truth to be heard. I am looking forward to starting the next phase of my life as a free man, no longer labeled as a murderer, for the first time in a long time."

Bill Amor was represented by a team of attorneys, including lawyers from the Illinois Innocence Project, the Exoneration Project and Cozen O’Connor. Amor’s trial team was Lauren Kaeseberg, Illinois Innocence Project Chicago legal director; Tara Thompson, staff attorney for the Exoneration Project; Erica Nichols Cook, formerly of the Illinois Innocence Project, now pro bono counsel for Amor and currently director of the Wrongful Conviction Division for the Iowa State Public Defender; Lauren Myerscough-Mueller, staff attorney for the Illinois Innocence Project; and Kevin Caraher, of the law firm Cozen O’Connor.

On the evening of September 10, 1995, Amor and his wife left their Naperville apartment (which they shared with Bill’s mother-in-law, Marianne Miceli) to go to a drive-in movie. They were gone for several hours and when they returned, they found that a fire had broken out at the apartment and Miceli had died from smoke inhalation.

Amor would be convicted two years later, on September 17, 1997, of murder and aggravated arson for setting the fire that caused Miceli’s death. Amor was convicted based upon faulty fire investigation and a purported confession to starting the fire in a way that experts recently testified is scientifically impossible. With the exception of the false confession, Amor has maintained his innocence from day one. He was ultimately sentenced to 45 years in prison.

The alleged false confession was given to police after two weeks in jail, following 15 hours of questioning and immediately after Amor had been served divorce papers in the interrogation room at the police station. The confession included details as to how Amor purportedly started the fire with vodka and a lit cigarette – which all experts, including the State’s own witness, testified is not possible.

“Justice has finally come for Mr. Amor in DuPage County. This took an army and we formed quite a team with the Exoneration Project and Cozen O’Connor, coming together to exonerate Bill,” said attorney Lauren Kaeseberg, who represents Bill Amor. “We have known for a long time that Bill is innocent and a terrible injustice occurred. While it took far too long, we are thrilled by today’s verdict finally exonerating Bill. We look forward to seeing Bill live his life, finally truly free, after so long.”

At the trial, nationally recognized arson experts testified about advances in fire science that discredit the original conviction in this case. The new evidence includes scientific proof that the way Amor claimed the fire started in the confession is impossible, and modern fire science actually shows that Amor was not even in the apartment when this fire started.

“Science matters. The truth matters. We are elated to have corrected this injustice and to be able to bring Bill justice after two long decades,” said Tara Thompson, staff attorney at the Exoneration Project. “This case presented a unique chance to objectively prove that the confession in this case is false – science proves that this so-called confession was fundamentally untrue and coerced.”

“I am happy and relieved for Bill- this has been a long journey over many years," said attorney Erica Nichols Cook. “Bill and his family have suffered due to his wrongful conviction and retrial. He is looking forward to the future.”

The Illinois Innocence Project looks forward to celebrating Amor’s exoneration at the Project’s annual Defenders of the Innocent award dinner in Springfield on April 28, 2018, at the Crowne Plaza Springfield.

UIS Illinois Innocence Project receives grant for DNA testing for innocence cases involving misidentification and false confessions

IIP exoneree Charles Palmer walks free from the Macon Co. Jail on Nov. 23, 2016.

The University of Illinois Springfield is pleased to announce that, with the support of the UIS Center for State Policy and Leadership, the Illinois Innocence Project (IIP) has been awarded federal grant funds totaling $641,000 to be distributed over two years. The grant will be used to clear Illinois innocence cases where DNA testing might decide the outcome of individuals who were found guilty as a result of an eyewitness misidentification or a false confession.

The award is part of a United States Department of Justice Bloodsworth Grant, named in honor of Kirk Bloodsworth, the first DNA death penalty exoneration case in the United States in 1993.

“The University of Illinois Springfield’s Illinois Innocence Project plays an important role in righting wrongs that have occurred in our justice system,” said U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL). “I worked to establish the Bloodsworth Grant Program more than a decade ago to help provide funding for DNA testing to exonerate the innocent. I congratulate the students and staff of the UIS Illinois Innocence Project for their tremendous work in seeking justice for the innocent and contributing to a justice system worthy of our nation’s ideals.”

In 2014, the Illinois Legislature highlighted problems with eyewitness ID practices when it passed legislation mandating eyewitness ID best practices developed in response to wrongful convictions. The law is an implicit acknowledgement that such wrongful convictions have occurred. IIP has received many requests from inmates whose cases include eyewitness misidentification, largely as a consequence of old practices.

“Eyewitness misidentification remains the most common factor in cases where wrongly convicted individuals have been proven actually innocent and exonerated,” said John Hanlon, IIP executive director. “Nearly one-third of the approximately 188 exonerations in Illinois since 1989 have involved eyewitness misidentification. In 70-75% of all cases where exoneration has occurred using DNA evidence, eyewitness misidentification was an important factor.”

IIP also continues to receive numerous inquiries in cases where individuals confessed falsely, but are innocent.

“Illinois, particularly Chicago, is noted for the large number of cases in which police coerced false confessions, in many cases with torture, which led to wrongful convictions,” said Hanlon.

The Project initially will focus on numerous cases it has screened in both areas in anticipation of receipt of this grant. The cases will be further reviewed to determine if the evidence can be tested or retested for DNA and if the likelihood is that the individual is actually innocent of the crime for which they were convicted.

“We know that DNA is the most important forensic tool to identify or exclude a perpetrator of a crime,” said Hanlon. “This grant will give the Project the resources it needs to follow up with investigation and DNA testing of the many requests we have from people who may actually be innocent.”

As part of the grant, the Illinois Innocence Project will hire several UIS undergraduate students to assist in the screening, review, and evaluation of the cases.

“This new federal grant not only meets a critical need in the state of Illinois but also provides important opportunities for our students,” said UIS Chancellor Susan J. Koch. “Present and future students will continue to have opportunities to learn about injustices in the criminal justice system through education and practice in ways that other universities cannot provide.”

UIS Illinois Innocence Project honored with the Joe Slaw Civil Rights Award from the NAACP Decatur Branch

Illinois Innocence Project (IIP) exoneree Charles Palmer and his wife Deborah stand as IIP Executive Director John Hanlon accepts the Joe Slaw Civil Rights Award from the NAACP Decatur Branch. Photo by Dennis Rumme.

The Illinois Innocence Project at the University of Illinois Springfield has been honored by the NAACP Decatur Branch with its prestigious Joe Slaw Civil Rights Award. The award was presented during the 77th Annual Freedom Fund Banquet and 4th Annual Game Changers Awards Ceremony at the Decatur Conference Center and Hotel on May 27, 2017.

In November 2016, the Project was instrumental in the exoneration of Charles Palmer, a Decatur resident, who was wrongly convicted of a 1998 murder and imprisoned for 18 years for a crime he did not commit.

The Illinois Innocence Project successfully litigated DNA testing of an unknown person’s tissue, which was found under the victim’s fingernails, and another person’s hair in his hand. Both samples went untested prior to trial. Upon testing by the Illinois Innocence Project, both DNA samples were found not to match Palmer.

“The award has existed for more than 30 years, yet this is the first time we are bestowing it upon a group based outside of the Decatur community,” said Jeanelle Norman, NAACP Decatur Branch president. “The NAACP believes the service of the Illinois Innocence Project was of such magnitude that the Decatur community moved one giant step forward in criminal justice.”

Since its founding in 2001, the Illinois Innocence Project has helped to free 10 wrongly convicted individuals.

“All of us at IIP and UIS are extremely grateful to receive this prestigious award from an organization as critically important to communities and our country as the NAACP in Decatur,” said John J. Hanlon, executive director of the Illinois Innocence Project. “We are proud of our work and of the result in Charles Palmer’s case, and equally proud to be the first recipient of this award from outside Decatur.”

“We find strength in organizations, such as the NAACP, whose work has a common purpose with ours – the fight for justice, often against difficult odds,” added Hanlon. “We thank the NAACP in Decatur for this award and pledge to continue that fight.”

The Illinois Innocence Project is dedicated to releasing innocent men and women imprisoned in Illinois for crimes they did not commit. They research and investigate claims of innocence and provide legal representation and other assistance to prove credible claims of actual innocence.  

The Project reviews more than 300 requests for help from Illinois inmates each year. Undergraduate students at the University of Illinois Springfield and law students from the state’s three public law schools work with IIP attorneys to review, evaluate and, where strong evidence of actual innocence exists, investigate and legally pursue claims of innocence.

UIS Illinois Innocence Project client granted new trial in DuPage County arson murder case

Today a DuPage County judge vacated the 1997 conviction of William (Bill) Amor, a client of the Illinois Innocence Project at the University of Illinois Springfield, and ordered a new trial in the arson murder case. The victory comes after a week-long post-conviction hearing was held the week of December 12, 2016, in DuPage County, where attorneys presented new arson-related scientific evidence in the 1995 Naperville arson case.

The Amor case is believed to be the first of its kind in the state of Illinois regarding changes in fire investigation.

Bill Amor was represented by four attorneys: Lauren Kaeseberg, Illinois Innocence Project legal director, Chicago office; Erica Nichols Cook, formerly of the Illinois Innocence Project, now pro bono counsel for Amor and currently Director of the Wrongful Conviction Division for the Iowa State Public Defender; Tara Thompson, staff attorney, the Exoneration Project; and Kevin Caraher, of the law firm Cozen O’Connor and pro bono attorney for Amor.

On the evening of September 10, 1995, Amor and his wife left their Naperville apartment (which they shared with Bill’s mother-in-law, Marianne Miceli) to go to a drive-in movie. They were gone for several hours and when they returned, they found that a fire had broken out at the apartment and Miceli had died from smoke inhalation.

Amor would be convicted two years later, on September 17, 1997, of murder and aggravated arson for setting the fire that caused Miceli’s death. Amor was convicted based upon a confession (which has been proven false) and arson findings that are no longer scientifically reliable. What stands out in this case is that Amor’s confession was the basis for the fire investigators in 1995 to change their initial finding of an “undetermined” cause of fire to an arson. With the exception of giving a false confession in this case, Amor has maintained his innocence from day one. He was ultimately sentenced to 45 years in prison.

The alleged false confession in this case was given to police after two weeks in jail after 15 hours of questioning and immediately following Amor being served divorce papers at the station. The confession included details as to how Amor purportedly started the fire with vodka and a lit cigarette – which, at the December hearing, all experts, including the State’s own witness, testified is not possible.  

“It is undisputed by the experts in this case that fire science has evolved, and it has changed to such an extent that the original findings in this case are unreliable,” said Lauren Kaeseberg, legal director of the Illinois Innocence Project Chicago office, who represents Bill Amor. “In fact, the evidence points to an accidental fire – which is what we believe occurred here. Bill Amor did not murder anyone and the science finally supports that which he has claimed for 22 years – he is innocent.”

At the December 2016 hearing, evidence was presented that showed the original arson findings are no longer reliable when analyzed under modern fire science techniques. Nationally recognized arson experts testified about the new science that undercuts the conviction in this case, including: Doug Carpenter, of Combustion Science & Engineering, Inc. in Columbia, Maryland, and John DeHaan of Fire-Ex Forensics in Vallejo, California. Further, ATF Senior Special Agent John Golder, called by the State at the hearing, conceded that the manner in which Amor’s confession claims the fire started is impossible and that Amor was not in the apartment when the fire started.

“Today this Court followed the law and finally gave Bill a chance at the justice he has been seeking for so long," said Erica Nichols Cook, who also represents Amor as pro bono “of counsel” for the Illinois Innocence Project, and is currently Director of the Wrongful Conviction Division for the Iowa State Public Defender. “We are confident that a jury hearing all of this new evidence would acquit Bill, and we look forward to the State’s Attorney’s Office considering today's ruling and allowing Bill to go home.”

“False confessions and faulty forensic science are two of the leading causes of wrongful convictions in this country,” said Tara Thompson, staff attorney at the Exoneration Project, who also represents Amor. “We hope that the Amor case can set a new standard in this state for how old, unreliable evidence is to be viewed in light of modern advancements. We know of too many other innocent people in this state and around the country who are suffering from wrongful arson convictions.”

The Illinois Innocence Project will honor Amor co-counsel Kevin Caraher of Cozen O’Connor for his and his firm’s exceptional pro bono representation of Amor at the Project’s annual Defenders of the Innocent award dinner in Springfield on April 29, 2017, at the Crowne Plaza Springfield.

A hearing to determine whether Amor will be released, retired or his case appealed by the prosecution will be held on April 13 in DuPage County court.

UIS Illinois Innocence Project seeks reversal of 1997 Naperville arson murder conviction

The Illinois Innocence Project at the University of Illinois Springfield is seeking a new trial in a 1995 Naperville arson murder case. Attorneys will appear in DuPage County court on Monday, December 12, 2016, at 1:30 p.m. arguing to reverse the convictions of William “Bill” Amor, who has spent 21 years incarcerated on a murder conviction they maintain he did not commit. The hearing is expected to last the week and is believed to be the first of its kind in Illinois regarding changes in fire investigation.

Bill Amor will be represented in court by four attorneys: Lauren Kaeseberg, Illinois Innocence Project legal director, Chicago office; Erica Nichols Cook, director of the Iowa State Public Defender Wrongful Convictions Unit (and former Illinois Innocence Project staff attorney); Tara Thompson, staff attorney, the Exoneration Project; and Kevin Caraher of the law firm Cozen O’Connor.

On the evening of September 10, 1995, Amor and his wife left their Naperville apartment (which they shared with Bill’s mother-in-law, Marianne Miceli) to go to a drive-in movie. They were gone for several hours and when they returned, they found that a fire had broken out at the apartment and Miceli had died from smoke inhalation, specifically carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

Amor would be convicted two years later, on September 17, 1997, of murder and aggravated arson for setting the fire that caused Miceli’s death. Amor was convicted based upon a confession (which the Project argues was false) and arson findings that are no longer scientifically reliable. What stands out in this case is that Amor’s confession was the basis for the fire investigators in 1995 to change their initial finding of an “undetermined” cause of fire to an arson. With the exception of giving a false confession in this case, Amor has maintained his innocence from day one. He was ultimately sentenced to 45 years in prison.

Attorneys and experts reviewing the evidence have found that investigators used outdated and discredited techniques to convict Amor. The methods used by the original fire investigators are no longer accepted as a scientifically reliable methodology in fire investigations. In fact, the “National Fire Protection Association’s Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigation”, “NFPA 921”, does not support the findings in this case.

In court this week, nationally recognized arson experts will testify about the new science which undercuts the conviction in this case, including: Doug Carpenter of Combustion Science & Engineering, Inc. in Columbia, Maryland, and John DeHaan of Fire-Ex Forensics in Vallejo, California. Noted expert on false confessions, Steve Drizin, associate dean and clinical professor of law at Bluhm Legal Clinic at the Northwestern University Law School, is on the witness list for Amor as well.

“This is a unique case where we can actually demonstrate the falsity of the confession because we know with expert certainty that a fire cannot be started the way Bill ‘confessed’ to starting the fire. The ‘arson’ finding predicated on that false confession, and based on erroneous science should not stand in the eyes of the law or justice,” said Lauren Kaeseberg, legal director of the Illinois Innocence Project Chicago office, who represents Bill Amor.

Also in question is the alleged false confession that Amor gave to the police at that time. His final statement to police came after two weeks in jail, immediately followed by being served divorce papers at the station, and 15 hours of questioning. The confession included details as to how Amor purportedly started the fire with vodka and a lit cigarette – it is now known that a fire cannot start that way.

“Confessions and statements by suspects are viewed differently today than they were in 1995, due in large part to the fact that false confessions have played a role in approximately 25% of the first 325 DNA exonerations, and 205 out of 1,600 exonerations nationwide, according to the National Registry of Exonerations. Today, we know that false confessions happen; this realization was not commonly accepted in 1995,” said Larry Golden, founding director of the Illinois Innocence Project.

“Bill Amor is an innocent man, who has spent 21 years in prison based on unreliable evidence. We are hopeful that the science will shine a light on the truth this week and there will finally be justice in the case of Bill Amor,” said Erica Nichols Cook, director of the Wrongful Convictions Unit of the Iowa State Public Defender, who also represents Amor as “of counsel” for the Illinois Innocence Project.

“Bill Amor’s conviction does not withstand the scrutiny of review based upon today’s science and understanding of fire investigation and false confessions. We know, based on a 2016-view of this case, that the 1990’s-arson findings are erroneous,” said Tara Thompson, staff attorney at the Exoneration Project, who also represents Amor.

Illinois Innocence Project wins release of wrongfully convicted Decatur man imprisoned for 18 years

A Decatur man walked free from the Macon County Courthouse today thanks to the efforts of the Illinois Innocence Project (IIP) at the University of Illinois Springfield. Newly discovered DNA evidence proves that Charles Palmer did not commit the 1998 murder of William Helmbacher.

On November 16, a Macon County judge overturned Palmer’s conviction and life sentence for first-degree murder and awarded him a new trial. The Macon County State’s Attorney declined to retry the case on November 23.

The case was overturned after DNA evidence, which was never tested by police, including the victim’s fingernail scrapings and hair found in the victim’s hand, was tested by the Illinois Innocence Project. In both cases, the DNA was not a match to Palmer.

“IIP filed a petition seeking a new trial based on this newly discovered DNA evidence,” said John Hanlon, executive director of the Illinois Innocence Project. “The prosecution, to their credit and in light of the newly discovered DNA evidence, agreed first to a new trial and today dismissed the case entirely.”



Helmbacher died in his Decatur apartment after suffering numerous blows to the head with a hammer. Another Decatur man, who lived in an adjoining apartment, became the lead suspect when he was arrested while carrying a plastic bag filled with the victim’s personal possessions. The man initially told the police that he knew nothing about the murder. However, after making a deal for himself whereby the murder charges were dismissed, he gave a statement to the police implicating Palmer.

The man also identified a pair of shoes “similar” to those supposedly worn by Palmer the evening of the crime. The crime lab found no evidence on them, though police said the apartment had been awash with blood. The lab returned the shoes to police, who sent them back with the request to “take them apart and check again.” This time, under layers of one shoe, three tiny spots of blood said to be from the victim were found. The evidence regarding these spots of blood would likely be inadmissible by today’s standards.

“While the police sent the shoes to the lab twice based on a supposed hunch that they should be examined again, they never sent to the lab even once the key biological evidence that had been collected at autopsy,” said Hanlon.

During jury deliberations at the April 2000 trial, the jury sent four distinct notes to the court, asking for every critical item of evidence. The jury also informed the court that they were “deadlocked”, and deliberated for 13 hours before finding Palmer guilty of murder – but not guilty of residential burglary.

A motion for DNA testing of numerous items of evidence was filed in 2010 and argued in 2011. The court permitted Palmer to test the fingernail scrapings and the hair but denied testing on all other items. The Illinois Innocence Project, through Hanlon, represented Palmer from 2011 through 2016, filing and litigating a number of motions toward deeper DNA testing of the evidence, and shepherding the evidence through various forms of testing.

“This case exemplified true teamwork by the Illinois Innocence Project,” said Hanlon. “Six UIS students, along with numerous IIP staffers and volunteers, worked on this case over the years, along with another six law school students from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign College of Law.”

Illinois Innocence Project Chicago Legal Director Lauren Kaeseberg began assisting with the case in fall 2016.

The DNA testing in Palmer’s case was made possible by federal grants awarded in 2010 and 2012 to the University of Illinois Springfield for use by the Illinois Innocence Project.