Post by WaTcHeR on Mar 2, 2007 11:56:34 GMT -5
WOODSTOCK – A judge’s ruling Thursday that a surveillance tape that defense attorneys claim might have captured a 2005 beating outside a Fox Lake bar, is irrelevant and could clear the way for the sentencing of former police officer Brian Quilici.
The sentencing for Quilici, a former Richmond and Spring Grove police officer convicted in August in connection with the Feb. 20, 2005, beating of Ryan Hallett outside KC’s Cabin, now is set for April 25-27. The sentencing had been postponed until the videotape issue was resolved.
Prosecutors say Quilici, along with two other former police officers and another co-defendant who are all still awaiting trial, handcuffed and beat Hallett.
The police officers were off duty at the time of the alleged beating.
A jury found Quilici guilty of two counts of aggravated battery, mob action, official misconduct and obstruction of justice. He could face up to five years in prison.
A judge ruled Thursday that prosecutors and police had not withheld a surveillance tape that defense attorneys claimed could prove the innocence of Jerome Volstad, 42, and Ronald Pilati, 35, who are the other former Spring Grove police officers allegedly involved in the beating.
Their attorneys have argued that a surveillance tape recorded from a nearby gas station is just one piece of evidence police mishandled.
“They are entitled to a fair trial and if there are videotapes, we are entitled to them,” said Tom Loizzo, Pilati’s lawyer.
Employees at the Rock Corner Citgo at Route 173 and Wilmot Road have testified that they zoomed a surveillance camera toward the scene that night after noticing multiple police cars and that the video didn’t capture the fight.
Prosecutors and state police investigators have denied seeing the tape and said they didn’t know where it was.
Employees said that two men in suits, whom they presumed were police, came to the gas station and asked for a copy of the tape a few days after the attack. But who those men were remains unknown by attorneys from both sides.
“I believe the video exists and I think they would exculpate Volstad and Pilati,” said Alfred Stavros, an attorney for Volstad.
Prosecutors called the tapes insignificant.
“The police would accomplish nothing by withholding irrelevant, post-occurrence images,” Judge Joseph Condon said. “The state has not violated the discovery orders.”
Discovery orders entitle both sides to see all the evidence in a case.
Meanwhile, the trial for Volstad, Pilati and Jessica Thelen, another co-defendant, has been set for July 16.
The defense lawyers also wanted access to a complete audio recording of a telephone conversation between Pilati and Quilici.
At one point during the investigation, Pilati agreed to assist Illinois State Police by trying to get Quilici to talk to him about what happened the night of the fight.
A recording of one call contains more than 9 minutes of conversation, but phone records show that the call lasted about twice as long.
“How in the world could these gentlemen get a fair trial?” Stavros asked after Condon’s ruling.
A state police investigator testified that the missing portion was because of a recording device malfunction.
“The court seriously doubts the recorded conversation rises to the level of potentially useful evidence,” Condon wrote in his four-page ruling.
Stavros and Loizzo said they planned to lodge further complaints with Condon that prosecutors violated discovery rules.
www.nwherald.com/articles/2007/03/02/news/local/doc45e7f89d7f35a498598338.txt
The sentencing for Quilici, a former Richmond and Spring Grove police officer convicted in August in connection with the Feb. 20, 2005, beating of Ryan Hallett outside KC’s Cabin, now is set for April 25-27. The sentencing had been postponed until the videotape issue was resolved.
Prosecutors say Quilici, along with two other former police officers and another co-defendant who are all still awaiting trial, handcuffed and beat Hallett.
The police officers were off duty at the time of the alleged beating.
A jury found Quilici guilty of two counts of aggravated battery, mob action, official misconduct and obstruction of justice. He could face up to five years in prison.
A judge ruled Thursday that prosecutors and police had not withheld a surveillance tape that defense attorneys claimed could prove the innocence of Jerome Volstad, 42, and Ronald Pilati, 35, who are the other former Spring Grove police officers allegedly involved in the beating.
Their attorneys have argued that a surveillance tape recorded from a nearby gas station is just one piece of evidence police mishandled.
“They are entitled to a fair trial and if there are videotapes, we are entitled to them,” said Tom Loizzo, Pilati’s lawyer.
Employees at the Rock Corner Citgo at Route 173 and Wilmot Road have testified that they zoomed a surveillance camera toward the scene that night after noticing multiple police cars and that the video didn’t capture the fight.
Prosecutors and state police investigators have denied seeing the tape and said they didn’t know where it was.
Employees said that two men in suits, whom they presumed were police, came to the gas station and asked for a copy of the tape a few days after the attack. But who those men were remains unknown by attorneys from both sides.
“I believe the video exists and I think they would exculpate Volstad and Pilati,” said Alfred Stavros, an attorney for Volstad.
Prosecutors called the tapes insignificant.
“The police would accomplish nothing by withholding irrelevant, post-occurrence images,” Judge Joseph Condon said. “The state has not violated the discovery orders.”
Discovery orders entitle both sides to see all the evidence in a case.
Meanwhile, the trial for Volstad, Pilati and Jessica Thelen, another co-defendant, has been set for July 16.
The defense lawyers also wanted access to a complete audio recording of a telephone conversation between Pilati and Quilici.
At one point during the investigation, Pilati agreed to assist Illinois State Police by trying to get Quilici to talk to him about what happened the night of the fight.
A recording of one call contains more than 9 minutes of conversation, but phone records show that the call lasted about twice as long.
“How in the world could these gentlemen get a fair trial?” Stavros asked after Condon’s ruling.
A state police investigator testified that the missing portion was because of a recording device malfunction.
“The court seriously doubts the recorded conversation rises to the level of potentially useful evidence,” Condon wrote in his four-page ruling.
Stavros and Loizzo said they planned to lodge further complaints with Condon that prosecutors violated discovery rules.
www.nwherald.com/articles/2007/03/02/news/local/doc45e7f89d7f35a498598338.txt