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Chicago man aims to be 45th person to have conviction tied to disgraced detective overturned

By
Alex Ortiz
Digital News Producer, CBS Chicago
Alex Ortiz is a web producer for CBS Chicago and a native of Romeoville in the southwest suburbs.
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Alex Ortiz

/ CBS Chicago

A man falsely accused of a 1988 murder is seeking to have his conviction, tied to disgraced Chicago police Det. Reynaldo Guevara, overturned, which would be the 45th such reversal.

One of those individuals, Edwin Ortiz, spent 25 years incarcerated for a Chicago murder he was falsely accused of, according to a news release. He was 15 years old when he was arrested and convicted for the murder of Jose Morales in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood. His attorneys said Guevara manipulated and bribed an eyewitness to identify Ortiz as the shooter.

They claimed Guevara "terrorized and framed dozens of innocent people, especially targeting the Humboldt Park neighborhood."

The attorneys said Guevara refused to defend any of his own investigations and has refused to answer questions, asserting his Fifth Amendment rights, about whether he fabricated evidence and manipulated witnesses to frame Ortiz.

"Today's a new day, a new beginning," Ortiz said on Thursday. "And I want to thank everybody who helped me. I appreciate y'all."

The Cook County State's Attorney's Office said it would no longer oppose efforts to vacate convictions where Guevara played a key role in the investigation.

At least 44 murder convictions in cases investigated by Guevara have been overturned, according to data collected by the Exoneration Project. Ortiz wants to become the 45th person to get their conviction overturned.

"Because a family who lost a child did not get justice and another family lost their son for 36 years," said attorney Anand Swaminathan.

The Exoneration Project said 25 of those people have been issued certificates of innocence. Being granted a certificate means a court has found them innocent.  

As for Guevara, he retired from the Chicago Police Department. He's living in Texas and collects a city pension.

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