On June 20, Loevy’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Team scored a major victory for
client Jamal Taylor, and for all individuals seeking to prove their innocence after a
wrongful conviction.
Mr. Taylor was sentenced to 55 years in prison in 2006, after a jury convicted him of
first-degree murder. Maintaining his innocence, Mr. Taylor filed a petition for post-
conviction relief in 2019. To support that petition, he filed two FOIA requests in 2022,
requesting his entire case file, including subpoenas and warrants, from the Cook County
State’s Attorney’s Office (CCSAO).
For two years, however, the CCSAO denied that request, claiming the records were
exempt under FOIA because producing them would “interfere with active administrative
enforcement proceedings” and “interfere with a pending law enforcement proceeding.”
The proceedings CCSAO claimed the request would interfere with were, in fact, Mr.
Taylor’s own pending post-conviction proceedings.
In 2023, the circuit court granted CCSAO’s motion for summary judgement, denying Mr.
Taylor’s motion. But Loevy + Loevy appealed on Mr. Taylor’s behalf, and on June 20 the
Appellate court reversed the trial court’s judgment. In its decision, the Appellate Court
ruled that public bodies cannot rely on the mere existence of a post-conviction
proceeding to withhold records, without demonstrating proof of how the release of the
specific information would interfere with the proceeding.
“The Appellate Court’s decision upholds FOIA’s purpose of promoting government
transparency and accountability for all people in Illinois,” says Loevy + Loevy attorney
Shelley Geiszler. “It’s an important win for Mr. Taylor, who has been waiting
to obtain these public records. And it’s an important win for all Illinois individuals
seeking the information they need to prove their innocence and overturn their
convictions.”
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