CHICAGO METRO HISTORY FAIR 2014 SUMMARY STATEMENT FORM Please TYPE on sheet or use word processing ALL

PROJECTS: Attach an annotated bibliography. Please divide primary and secondary sources from each other. Two copies of SSF & Annotated Bibliography are required for competitions. . Title: Andrew Wilson: The Criminal who Exposed Years of Police Brutality Student name: Jacob Schein & John Moutidis Project Category: Website This project uses the 2014 National History Day theme, Rights and Responsibilities

1. THESIS STATEMENT Present the projects argument or interpretation in two sentences. If you are using the NHD theme, you might want to make it evident in your thesis statement:

The brutal interrogation of Andrew Wilson by Jon Burge altered the way that police around the nation forever carried out interrogations in order to not breach our rights, specifically the eighth amendment which states that "Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted".

2. SUMMARY OF PROJECT Briefly explain your project and its conclusion. Include: How and why did change happen and what was the impact? Why is it historically significant? What historical meaning or importance can we learn from your findings?

Andrew Wilson was initially a simple, low-life criminal who was arrested for killing a police officer in 1978. What happened after his arrest though was extremely shocking because he was brutally and unnecessarily tortured by a Commander Jon Burge who illicitly extracted a confession out of the man through use of excessive torture. After this occurred, Andrew WIlson gained a civil trial and exposed the torture and injustice that he experienced to the city of Chicago. WIlsons case was so highly publicized that it garnered attention all around the country and made many people aware of the systematic abuse that was occurring in Chicago at the time. Because Wilson chose to speak up where many kept quiet and allowed the abuse to proceed, cameras in interrogation rooms started to become mandatory/standard to prevent such abuse in any city or county in the nation. Wilsons case made the public realize that torture shouldnt be condoned in any situation, and because of such acts like the Illinois Torture Inquiry and Relief Act were passed to compensate any of the unfortunate victims to Burges cruelty. Wilson really stepped forward and eroded much of the police brutality that was occurring in the nation by sharing his story.

3. Required for projects using the National History Day theme only. Explain how this project integrates the NHD theme Rights and Responsibilities into its argument. Prior to Andrew Wilsons case, thousands of criminals around Chicago were being tortured and deprived of their eighth amendment, a right that states nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. By stepping forward and exposing the wrongdoings of Burge and his colleagues, Wilson restored the rights of the future criminals in Chicago who would once have been subject to horrific torture. He showed the entire American population through his gruesome tale that even a criminal should be entitled to their eighth amendment, and by doing such he changed an entire nation and made it so things like cameras were mandatory in interrogation rooms to prevent such rights and responsibilities from being dispossessed again.

4. PROCESS A. What historical question did you start off withand how did it change once you began doing your research? My historical question began with why was Jon Burge important? As I did more research I came across the specific case of Andrew Wilson, and after further research I saw all of these articles and pieces on him, his life, and his trials. I started to see that he was more than just a cop killer, so my question essentially transformed into how did Andrew Wilson preserve and restore the eighth amendment to people all around the nation.

B. What kinds of sources did you use as evidence to develop your argument (for example, letters, photographs, government documents, interviews, etc.)? I used photographs, letters, interviews, videos, and articles.

C. Select one piece of evidence that you used and explain how it influenced your argument. One significant piece of evidence that I used was an Office of Professional Standards Report issued against Jon Burge on many claims of torture. This report basically legitimized Wilsons claims and showed that Burges torture wasnt a one time incident, it was a systematic abuse occurring over many years. It influenced my argument significantly by depicting Burges abuse as long term, and it made me realize that by stopping the abuse and exposing it, Andrew Wilson halted an entire real system of torture in the Chicago Police Department.

D. List libraries (other than school), museums, and other institutions that you visited to do your research. DePaul Library