SNEED: Convictions to be tossed for 15 framed by corrupt cop

It’s a done deal.

Sneed has learned Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx has given the green light to tossing out the convictions of 15 men who claimed a corrupt Chicago cop, Sgt. Ronald Watts, framed them. The 15 men have 18 cases between them that will be dismissed.

The men, who filed a petition with the Cook County Criminal Court in September, seeking to have their convictions overturned and set aside, were just notified their request was granted.

To wit: The conviction integrity unit of the Cook County state’s attorney’s office just turned a thumbs-up to dismissing and vacating their convictions, which will be made official when they appear Thursday morning before Chief Criminal Court Judge LeRoy Martin.

The petitioners’ attorney, Joshua Tepfer, tells Sneed: “I believe this to be the first mass exoneration in the history of Cook County.

“A remarkable moment,” Tepfer said. “It is evident the state’s attorney’s office is showing a demonstrated commitment to ferreting out and not tolerating police corruption.

“This group of police officers led by Sgt. Watts had been doing this for 10 years; corruption on this scale is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. It’s truly astounding. This represents great hope for the future of our county.”

The petitioners are: Frank Saunders, Taurus Smith, Shaun James, Lionel White, Henry Thomas, Marcus Gibbs, Andre McNairy, Jamell Sanders, Christopher Scott, Thomas Jefferson, Lee Rainey, Allen Jackson, Jamar Lewis, Leonard Gipson and Philip Thomas.

“But this is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Tepfer, who works for the University of Chicago’s Exoneration Project, which drafted the peititions for the men.

“The officers involved in this corruption were responsible for 1,000 arrests in this decadelong reign of terror,” he added.

“Their arrests led to at least 500 convictions. So far 26 convictions have been overturned. That leaves about 474 not accounted for. What is also equally important is why some of these officers involved in this corruption are still on the police force,” Tepfer said.

Foxx spokesman Robert Foley said the office is “looking into dozens of other cases and [has] identified a pattern within the cases which suggests corrupt activity involving Sgt. Watts and members of his crew.”

According to court records, Watts was convicted in October 2013 after being found guilty for his role in an FBI sting operation.

Watts was then released from jail after serving a 22-month sentence. Sneed is told he lives out of state.

He and a fellow office were both recorded stealing $5,000 from a federal informant and in their guilty plea admitted to routinely extorting money from drug dealers.

For years, the CPD’s Internal Affairs Division, as well as the state’s attorney’s office and the FBI, had been conducting a lengthy probe on Sgt. Watts and suspicious activity — yet he continued to work despite mounting allegations.

In each case, the men say they were shaken down for cash or drugs by the rogue officers, and were arrested on bogus charges if they refused to pay.

Each of the defendants had claimed they had been framed at the time of their arrests, which range from 2003 to 2008 — all dates before Watts was indicted, the petition said.

In one case, petitioner Leonard Gipson said Watts and his fellow tactical team officers arrested him three times after planting drugs on him. Then demanded a payoff.

Sneedlings . . .

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