Good Samaritan, False Arrest, 7.7 Million

In 2002 Rachelle Jackson, a trained nurse, heard the sound of an auto crash while out walking. When she got there a police car had been hit when another car ran a stop sign. The driver of the police car was unconscious and the other officer was dazed. She pulled the passenger, Officer Kelly Brogan, from the car and helped her to a nearby stoop.

Police at the scene told Rachelle that the driver’s weapon had been stolen and asked her to go to the police station for questioning. Instead of being asked about the accident, she was accused of stealing the gun. She was held for two days with little to drink or eat until she agreed to sign a statement the police had prepared. She was charged and held in jail for ten months waiting for her trial. Her case was thrown out by a circuit court judge and in 2003 she sued the city of Chicago, Officer Brogan and the two officers who interrogated her.

In June, a federal jury found against the city and several officers. They awarded Rachelle 7.7 million dollars for false arrest, malicious prosecution, coercive questioning and intentional affliction of emotional distress.