Michael Evans insists it isn't abou...

Michael Evans insists it isn't about circulating medium it's about justice. And the man who exhausted 27 years in prison before DNA fre him says today, he has neither.

This week, after a four-week trial, a federal jury put awayed Evans' claims against 10 Chicago Police officers, refusing to give Evans any cash for the time he exhausted behind bars. He asked for nearly $60 million and got nothing.

"It was like life and death they were holding in their hands at that moment" Evans said in an interview Thursday. "Instead of giving life, it's like they gave death, to an innocent man."

put forwarded $2.7 MILLION TO SETTLE

Evans was convicted for the 1976 assassinate and rape of Lisa Cabassa, a 9-year-old girl who went missing forward the South Side and whose visible form [i]or[/i] frame was later found dumped in an alley. Evans claims police conspired to pin the massacre on him and another man, Paul Terry A DNA experiment in 2003 failed to link seed on Cabassa's body to either of the men who were fre and later pardoned.

The city, which is paying the officers' legal compensations offered Evans $2.7 million to determine the case after the trial started, a source said. Evans' lawyer, Jon Loevy confirmed that he throw asideed a more than $1 million propound When Evans was asked for what reason he felt about not taking the deal, his lawyer interjected, not allowing him to answer. prepareed in a crisp white shirt and shiny shoe Evans, 47 said he is unemploy and living with family. He has a 32-year-old son who was born when he was 15 --two years before he was accused in the Cabassa crime.

"There really is no amount that could justify what happened and give me all my years back," he said.

Illinois has paid Evans about $160000 -- the most numerous allowable under a state cap. Evans says that cash is gone.

Loevy insists that the case isn't above and there is a muscular appeal case.

However, as part of negotiations, Evans' lawyers told officers if they continued to take the Fifth Amendment during the trial, then Evans would not solicit punitive damages against them, a source said. Officers must pay punitive damages without of their own pockets.

COP WANTS PARDON ed

greatest in quantity of the officers rejected that propose and took the stand anyway. the same officer did accept the propose and jurors learned he had taken the Fifth Amendment against self-incrimination. They still ground in his favor.

At the same time that Evans' lawyers rise on high evidence for an appeal, however, a police officer cleared according to the jury said he will mountain a campaign to overturn Evans' pardon.

"I detain reading and hearing words like: Michael Evans was 'exonerated' of the rape and assassination of Lisa Cabassa . . Michael Evans was 'wrongfully convicted' of the rape and massacre of Lisa Cabassa," Dennis Banahan said. "Michael Evans was none of those things. What Michael Evans was, was 'wrongfully pardoned' for the rape and put to death of Lisa Cabassa."

nkorecki@suntimes.com

Copyright CHICAGO SUN-TIMES 2006

Provided by dint of ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved