Conviction vacated for last jailed defendant in 2011 murder of Chicago police Officer Clifton Lewis

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A man convicted of killing a Chicago police officer in 2011 had his conviction vacated by a judge Wednesday.

Alexander Villa was one of three defendants charged in the murder of Clifton Lewis, and the only one who was still incarcerated.

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The Cook County State's Attorney's Office dropped its case against Villa Wednesday, making him the third defendant whose case was dropped in the officer's 2011 murder.

Villa asked a judge to overturn his life sentence, handed down a little over a year ago, based on allegations that prosecutors hid crucial evidence that would've proven his innocence.

The alleged misconduct prompted prosecutors to drop charges against Villa's co-defendants, Edgardo Colon and Tyrone Clay, last year, nearly 12 years after the men were arrested.

A large group of Villa's family and friends attended Wednesday's criminal court hearing at 26th Street and California Avenue in support. All were wearing matching shirts.

Cheers broke out in the lobby of the Leighton Cook County Criminal Courthouse Wednesday afternoon, as Villa's friends and family celebrated the ruling.

Nearly 11 years after Villa was first incarcerated, charged and later found guilty, he will soon be a free man.

"There's two victims in this situation. You have a person who was wrongfully incarcerated for something he didn't do. And you have a family that is suffering the loss of their loved one. No one wins," Villa's sister Melissa said.

On the other side, a group of police officers with the Fraternal Order of Police also attended the hearing.

The 41-year-old slain Chicago police officer was working as a security guard at a West Side convenience store Dec. 29, 2011, when he was shot and killed trying to break up an armed robbery.

He was working the second job to save up for his impending wedding.

Villa, Colon and Clay were arrested within a week. But their cases were plagued with irregularities from the beginning. Defense attorneys accused police and prosecutors of coercing confessions, making up evidence and ignoring an FBI-generated cellphone tower map that Villa's attorney showed Wednesday after court.

"This is where the crime happened. The men are mapped everywhere but where the crime happened. They weren't together the entire day," Villa's attorney Jennifer Blagg said.

Villa's sentence was vacated as a result of what prosecutors said in court was potentially exculpatory evidence found post-conviction. Attorneys representing Lewis' family denounce that decision.

"If in fact he is innocent, or his trial was somehow done in a way that was unfair, then let's have a new trial. But instead we're just going to let him walk out of the courthouse," attorney Tim Grace said.

The state's attorney's office would not comment on what the potentially exculpatory evidence was.

Lewis' sister said this all feels unjust and unfair to their family. She asked: If these three men didn't kill her brother, who did?

The officer's family now wants his case to be picked back up so they can find out who killed Clifton Lewis.

The question now is whether Villa can be re-indicted.

"The winner of the state's attorney's race, who we expect to be Judge O'Neil Burke, absolutely needs to pledge publicly that she is going to re-indict and re-try this case as soon as she is in office. If not, she will not have FOP support," FOP President John Catanzara said.

Villa is being held downstate at Lawrence Correctional Center. His lawyer said he likely won't be released until Thursday.

In a statement Wednesday, the Cook County State's Attorney's Office said, "After the sentencing of Alexander Villa for the 2011 murder of Officer Clifton Lewis, our office discovered evidence that had not been previously or timely provided to the defense. This information is potentially exculpatory, material, and relevant to a jury's evaluation of the case, and therefore, we are compelled to agree to vacate this conviction and dismiss the charges. We acknowledge the pain and frustration this causes the family of Officer Lewis, who deserves to be remembered for his dedicated service to the Chicago Police Department and the City of Chicago rather than for procedural errors that have marred our pursuit of justice and accountability. While this is heartbreaking, prosecutors have the responsibility to not only find justice for the harmed but also uphold the constitutional rights of the accused. In this instance, we fell short. We are actively working to learn from the chain of events that has led us to this point so that we can make necessary improvements to our systems and ensure this does not happen again."