Courtroom 302

When he reflected on his career as a prosecutor, the one case that dimmed Judge Locallo’s mood was that of George Jones—a 19-year-old “tried for murder, rape, attempted murder, home invasion, and burglary in 1982” (151). Jones was eventually “cleared of all charges” (151). Later, Jones filed a civil suit against the Chicago Police Department and was awarded $801,000 in damages. An appeals court panel in 1988 ruled that detectives working on the case were determined to imprison Jones “regardless of the evidence” (151). Jones, an outstanding student and son of a Chicago police officer, was accused of raping and murdering 12-year-old Shelia Pointer and attempting to murder her 10-year-old brother, Purvy Pointer.

Officers arrested Jones based on Purvy Pointer’s whispering his first name when he emerged from a four-day-long coma. Jones lived near the Pointer family. When police learned this, they showed Pointer a photo of George Jones. Pointer cried at the sight of the photo and identified Jones as the man who came to his house. Detectives arrested Jones at his high school. Jones was then taken to Pointer’s bedside, where he was asked to identify Jones a second time. There was controversy over whether Pointer correctly identified Jones.