Opinion ID: 2998688
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Evans’ Civil Case

Text: On November 16, 2000, Evans filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois against the City of Chicago and eight Chicago Police Officers.17 In his second amended complaint,18 which is pertinent here, Evans claims that he is entitled to damages, due to the fact that inter alia: the named officers violated the RICO, 42 U.S.C. § 1961, et seq.; the officers and the City 16 The agreement between Evans and the State’s Attorney’s office to nolle prosequi the May 12, 1997 charge in return for a guilty plea on the June 8, 1997 charge is reflected both in the affidavit of Brian Klauss, the Assistant State’s Attorney who prosecuted the case, and in the transcript of the sentencing proceedings. At sentencing, Judge Haberkorn expressly acknowledges that Evans is pleading guilty to the June 8, 1997 charge “pursuant to agreement.” In addition, the court thoroughly questioned Evans as to his understanding of what his guilty plea meant and as to his intention to enter such a plea voluntarily. Also, Klauss states in an affidavit that the only reason he moved to nolle prosequi the May 12, 1997 charge was because of the agreement. Indeed, he states that, at the time, he “believed that if the matter had gone to trial, it would [have] result[ed] in a conviction, based in large part on the fact that Judge Haberkorn had convicted [co-defendant] Doris Jones of the May 12 charges and had expressed her belief that these same arresting officers were credible in their testimony on the same facts.” 17 See supra note 1 and accompanying text. 18 See supra note 2 and accompanying text. No. 03-3844 11 violated his First Amendment right to free speech, 42 U.S.C. § 1983; the officers and the City violated Illinois law by maliciously prosecuting him; and that the officers and the City also violated Illinois law by intentionally inflicting emotional distress upon him. See Evans v. City of Chicago, No. 00-C-7222, 2003 WL 22232963 (N.D. Ill. Sept. 26, 2003). Following discovery, the defendants moved for summary judgment and, on September 26, 2003, the district court granted the defendant’s motion in its entirety. Specifically, the trial judge concluded that Evans could not prevail on his malicious prosecution claim because he could not establish that the circumstances surrounding the nolle prosequi of the May 12, 1997 charge and the withdrawal of the violation of probation charge were “consistent with his innocence.” Id. at -20. In addition, as to Evans’ First Amendment civil rights claims and his state law intentional infliction of emotional distress claims, the court found that because the alleged illegal acts took place in 1997, and that suit was not filed until 2000, they were both well beyond the two-year statute of limitations for First Amendment civil rights claims in the State of Illinois, see Kelly v. City of Chicago, 4 F.3d 509, 511 (7th Cir. 1993), and the applicable one-year statute of limitations for tort claims against governmental employees in Illinois, see 745 ILCS 10/8-101. Id. at -17, -23. Finally, the district judge concluded that Evans’ RICO claims must also fail as a matter of law, due to the fact that he lacked standing to bring that claim because he had failed to establish that he had been injured in his “business or property by reason of a violation of Section 1962” within the meaning of 18 U.S.C. § 1964(c). Id. at -14. Judgment was entered in favor of the City of Chicago and the officers, and Evans timely appealed. 12 No. 03-3844