'Senseless and cruel': Wrongfully convicted Chicago brothers denied certificates of innocence
Sean Tyler, Reginald Henderson say they were tortured by CPD officers trained by Chicago Police Cmdr. Jon Burge
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Two Chicago brothers' petition for certificates of innocence two years after being exonerated for crimes they did not commit was denied Thursday morning at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse.
They will have to fight for the expungement of their records in a new court case.
Sean Tyler and Reginald Henderson said they were tortured into false confessions nearly 30 years ago by corrupt cops trained under disgraced former Chicago Police Cmdr. Jon Burge in 1994.
Burge was convicted in 2010 of lying about the torture of suspects. He has since died.
Both brothers have been exonerated and want certificates of innocence to clear their names.
"I want to move and not be watched. Move and not be judged. That's what I want. Because that's what's supposed to happen for someone who's innocent. That's how an innocent person moves," Tyler said.
On Thursday, the two were frustrated, upset and exhausted.
WATCH: Brothers speak after being denied certificates of innocence
"Years y'all put us in there, y'all created guys that can come back to these communities and be way better. That's why you don't want us to have it. 'Cause we can be good in these communities with these kids. Let's understand that racial diversity is going on. I want y'all to do y'all's due diligence and go back and look and see the guys who get their certificates of innocence, Black and white and Latino, I want y'all to see the history that goes with it. Look at it, and see the guys that have to fight," Henderson said.
The judge said in court Thursday the brothers have to prove their actual innocence in court during a new hearing.
The brothers quoted Martin Luther King Jr. saying, their justice delayed is justice denied.
"The reality is that you have two African American men here who are fighting for their lives and have been since 17 and 18 in the city of Chicago," Henderson said.
"We know from the evidence that's been presented that they don't have the goods and that's why it's so frustrating because then it feels like an effort to delay and it's senseless and cruel," said Henderson's Attorney, Jennifer Bonjean.
A certificate of innocence would expunge the murder conviction, allowing the brothers to no longer be labeled felons.
"It's easier to get a job, easier to own a firearm, any number of things you can do. The other thing is it unlocks the doors to monetary recovery, so a certificate of innocence would entitle them to seek relief from the state for wrongful imprisonment," said ABC 7 Legal Expert Gil Soffer.
Soffer said the state isn't obligated to oppose the certificates of innocence.
"And yet at the same time the state can say, but it doesn't mean they were actually innocent of the crimes," he added.
That contradiction is confounding to the two men who spend decades detained for a crime they say they didn't commit.
"If you exonerated us then what else is left?" asked Tyler.
"We have every right to stand here before you and ask for our lives back. Respectfully," said Henderson.
Since being released from prison, life has not been easy for Tyler and Henderson.
SEE MORE: Expungement case for Chicago brothers wrongfully convicted pushed back by judge
"They ask, how our life's been since we've been home?" Henderson said. "Everybody that accepted our collect calls are gone."
Their mother passed shortly after, as did their sister. It's 25 years lost with loved ones, having spent the better part of their lives behind bars for a crime they had nothing to do with.
In 1994, they said they were among the more than 100 men tortured into murder confessions by officers trained under Burge. The city has paid out millions in lawsuit settlements and judgments related to these crimes.
The two brothers were exonerated in 2021, but still have not received certificates of innocence.
"I don't see how one doesn't go with the other," Tyler said. "I don't see how you could be innocent and still somehow be guilty."
Having suffered enough, the siblings are hoping for closure in this grueling chapter of their lives.
"Just waiting," Tyler said. "I do know that it's coming, but just waiting."
Their next court date is April 20, with a witness hearing starting May 4.
ABC7 reached out to the Cook County State's Attorney's office for an explanation on why prosecutors are opposing a certificate of innocence but they said they have no comment on pending litigation.
"We'll win this case, eventually. Sean and Reginald are innocent, and we'll prove it in court," said Karl Leonard with the Exoneration Project.
