David Koschman

City of Chicago Reaches Settlement Agreement with Nanci Koschman

The Chicago City Council has approved payment of $250,000 as settlement of a federal lawsuit alleging a conspiracy to cover up the truth surrounding the 2004 death of 21-year-old son, David Koschman.

“When David Koschman’s young life came to a tragic end on the streets of Chicago, Nanci Koschman’s grief was compounded by a police ‘investigation’ that was more cover-up than a real investigation,” said Locke Bowman, Director of the Roderick and Solange MacArthur Justice Center.  “Disclosure of the truth about David’s death and prosecution of the man responsible for that death could not have happened without her courage and determination. 

“Those who conspired against the delivery of justice in this case thought the system would protect them and that no one would ever know the secrets of the police work – incompetence combined with malicious misdirection,” Bowman said.  “They underestimated the strength of Nanci Koschman’s character.  At great cost to her emotional well-being, she has persevered and allowed the public to learn the truth behind the corruption carried out by the people hired to protect us and deliver justice.”

Richard J. Vanecko, a nephew of former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley, avoided prosecution for several years before Nanci Koschman successfully petitioned the court for an independent investigation.  Dan Webb, who was appointed as special prosecutor, took the findings of his investigation to a grand jury and Vanecko was charged in December 2012.  Last year, Vanecko pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter.

Nanci Koschman has been represented by the MacArthur Justice Center and the People’s Law Office.  

Her federal lawsuit was filed in March 2014 in an effort to uncover more of the truth about police and prosecutors hiding facts and creating phony evidence following the fatal punch thrown by Vanecko.  The lawsuit against Cook County and Vanecko continues.

City Council agrees to pay $250,000 to Koschman mom, Chicago Sun-Times

City's top lawyer defends Koschman settlement as cost-effective, Chicago Tribune

Update -04/15/15


Attorneys Expose Faulty Logic Behind Motions That Would Deprive Nanci Koschman Of Opportunity to Seek Redress For Her Son’s Death

Nanci Koschman’s lawyers have filed a 43-page memorandum refuting arguments made by more than two dozen defendants trying to dodge responsibility for the severe emotional distress caused by their conspiracy to cover up the truth about the 2004 homicide of her son, David.

The defendants – including Richard J. Vanecko, David’s killer and a nephew of former Mayor Richard M. Daley – have filed motions seeking dismissal of Nanci Koschman’s federal lawsuit, which alleges Chicago police, prosecutors and others conspired to protect Vanecko from being held accountable for 21-year-old David Koschman’s death.

The conspiracy, which included hiding of facts and the creation of phony evidence, began shortly after Vanecko injured David Koschman and ran through the appointment of a special prosecutor and Vanecko’s December 2012 indictment for the reckless use of physical force without lawful justification to cause David’s death. The conspiracy was finally defeated with Vanecko’s guilty plea in January 2014.

“Vanecko’s guilty plea finally undid the cover-up and his phony exoneration, and the Special Prosecutor’s report, which was released a few days later, described for the first time and in detail the manner in which the Police and the State’s Attorney’s Office had fabricated evidence and created a false official record in order to shield Vanecko from civil and criminal liability,” according to the memorandum in opposition to all of the defendants’ motions to dismiss the case.  Mrs. Koschman’s complaint was filed in March 2014.

The motions to dismiss include a defense claim that the cover-up did not prevent Mrs. Koschman from filing a claim against Vanecko before the statute of limitations ran and that her claim was made too late.

But her attorneys argue her case is “strikingly similar” to the facts in Bell v. City of Milwaukee, a 1984 U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit decision affirming a lower court’s ruling that a police cover-up had deprived Bell’s family of the opportunity to present wrongful death claims for 20 years after his death.  The Bell decision allowed the claim to be heard in court even though the statute of limitations had run out many years earlier.

“Mrs. Koschman makes the same claims here,” according to the memorandum presented by her attorneys.  “Acting to cover up a crime committed by a son of Chicago’s most powerful political family, Chicago Police and Cook County State’s Attorneys acted in conspiracy to create a false official account of the incident in which David Koschman was killed. Although Vanecko’s assault of David was unjustified and criminal, the defendants created a false official record of the investigation, labeling Vanecko as the victim of David’s unjustified aggression.”

As in the Bell case, the memorandum states, “false official records and police perjury concealed and obscured the truth and thereby erected a substantial barrier to Mrs. Koschman, depriving her of her fair opportunity to go to court to vindicate her son’s death.”

Her attorneys pointed out that the holding in Bell regarding the commencement of the statute of limitations must be applied in the Koschman case, and that the straightforward holding begins the statute of limitations on the day Vanecko entered a guilty plea to the crime the defendants had covered up.  “Since this suit was commenced well within two yeas of that date, it is timely,” they said.

Read the plaintiff’s consolidated memorandum in opposition to all defendants’ motions to dismiss HERE.

Lawyers:  Conspiracy Kept Mom From Suing, Chicago Sun-Times

Update - 07/18/14


After Years of Inaction and a Sham Investigation, CPD has Conflict of Interest

Pointing out the Chicago Police Department’s obvious conflict of interest, attorneys for Nanci Koschman declined a CPD internal affairs investigator’s request to talk with Ms. Koschman, who has filed a federal lawsuit alleging CPD conducted sham investigations into the 2004 death of her son. 

In a letter to CPD’s Internal Affairs Division, Ms. Koschman’s lawyers reminded CPD that the lawsuit – filed a month before CPD’s newfound interest in talking to Ms. Koschman – contends that the division failed for seven years to investigate CPD’s questionable handling of the attack that took her son’s life and then conducted a fake investigation into the mishandling of an official police file in the death investigation.

Ms. Koschman’s attorneys – Locke Bowman, Executive Director of the Roderick and Solange MacArthur Justice Center, and G. Flint Taylor, a founding partner of the People’s Law Office, – wrote that the CPD’s Internal Affairs Division’s “inaction for many years gives us absolutely no confidence that the present proposed investigation . . . will be independent and vigorous or that it will lead to appropriate discipline for all the officers . . . who are implicated in this decade-long police cover-up.”

Read the letter to CPD Internal Affairs Division HERE.

After 10 Years, CPD Wants To Talk To Mom, Chicago Sun-Times

Updated – 06/02/14


Federal Civil Rights Lawsuit Filed in Response to Cover-up of Daley Relative’s Responsibility for Homicide of David Koschman 

Nanci Koschman has filed a federal lawsuit alleging Chicago police, prosecutors and others conspired to cover up the truth of her son David Koschman’s death caused by a blow struck by Richard J. Vanecko, a nephew of former Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley.

Defendants in the lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, include the City of Chicago, former Police Superintendent Phil Cline, Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez, and more than a dozen police officers involved in hiding facts and creating phony evidence.  Vanecko, who pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in the death of 21-year-old David Koschman, also was named as a defendant as were several “John Doe” Daley family members.

Vanecko avoided prosecution for several years before the Roderick and Solange MacArthur Justice Center and the People’s Law Office successfully petitioned the court for an independent investigation, and Dan Webb, who was appointed as special prosecutor, took the findings of his investigation to a grand jury and Vanecko was charged in December 2012 in connection with the 2004 death of David Koschman.

Nanci Koschman told reporters she was shocked by the findings in the special prosecutor’s report, which detailed manufactured evidence, lost files and an effort to make David Koschman look like the aggressor in the confrontation. 

Locke Bowman, Director of the MacArthur Justice Center, said the special prosecutor’s report makes clear that there was no thorough police investigation of the circumstances leading to David Koschman’s hospitalization and eventual death and that the early police investigation was transformed into a “wholesale cover-up” as soon as police learned that a Daley nephew was involved.

“Very early on, not as the result of the ordinary process of the investigation but as the result of some back channel communication that could only have originated with Vanecko and the other Daley associates, the police were informed of the identity of the person who was involved,” Bowman said.  “That’s when this investigation went off the rails – at exactly that moment.”

Bowman said the special prosecutor’s report left many questions unanswered and that testimony and other evidence that might be unearthed by the lawsuit could give the Koschman family and the public more information about who was involved in the cover-up and what was done to conceal the facts. 

Nanci Koschman said she brought the legal action as part of her fight on behalf of her son.  “I just feel like he needed to be fought for and there are going to be other people that might come along that this might happen to,” she said.  “So, my voice is for him and for anybody else who faces a wall like I faced.”

Most of all Nanci Koschman wants answers.  “If I get the answers, it will make me more at peace,” she said.

Read the lawsuit Nanci Koschman v. the City of Chicago HERE.

Can’t Let Them Get Away With This Again, Chicago Sun-Times

Mom Sues, Claiming Official Coverup, Chicago Sun-Times

Nanci Koschman to Sue Over Civil Rights Violation, NBC 5

Updated – 03/24/14


Special Prosecutor’s Report Details “Pathetic” Response of Police and Prosecutors

A special prosecutor’s report has made clear that the early response of Chicago police and prosecutors investigating the altercation resulting in the death of David Koschman was “pathetic,” according to attorneys for Mr. Koschman’s family.

Special prosecutor Dan Webb’s report was released to the public on Feb. 4, days after Richard Vanecko pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter.  Vanecko is a nephew of Richard M. Daley, who was mayor of Chicago in 2004 when Mr. Koschman died of head injuries suffered when punched by Vanecko on a Chicago street. The police, with an Assistant Cook County State’s Attorney, had initially documented Vanecko’s assault as an act of self-defense against Koschman.  According to now-discredited police reports, Koschman was “clearly the aggressor” in the encounter with Vanecko. 

The indictment of Vanecko came after the appointment of Webb as a special prosecutor in 2012.  That appointment came in response to a petition filed on behalf of Koschman's family by the MacArthur Justice Center and the People’s Law Office.

Although Webb’s report said his team found no evidence of direct contact between police investigators and Daley, there is no doubt that political clout played a role in the initial investigation, which did not lead to any charges against Vanecko, said Locke Bowman, Executive Director of the Roderick and Solange MacArthur Justice Center.  

Webb’s report stated that a state law imposing a three-year statute of limitation on the prosecution of violations by police and prosecutors barred any charges against police and prosecutors involved in the 2004 investigation and that he lacked sufficient evidence to bring charges in relation to the renewed investigations in 2011 and 2012.

Bowman said the work of police and prosecutors in the case was nothing short of “pathetic.” He said the absence of a physical record of a phone call between the mayor and a police officer was not convincing evidence that clout or fear of clout did not play a role in the investigation. 

"In this city ... you don't need a phone call," Bowman said. 

Read the full report HERE

Editorial: Police Department needs to pay the price for handling of Koschman investigations, Chicago Sun-Times

Daley quickly knew of nephew’s involvement, Chicago Sun-Times

Special prosecutor: Daley, family did not try to influence Koschman case, Chicago Tribune

Webb weighed charges against 6 cops, Chicago Sun-Times

10 witnesses testified under immunity, Chicago Sun-Times

No evidence Daley influenced 2004 death investigation involving nephew, report says, WLS-TV

Special prosecutor says Daley did not try to influence Vanecko case, WGN-TV

Attorney: Clout Played a Role in Koschman Probe, NBC 5

Updated - 02/04/14


Special Prosecutor's Investigation Concluded But Contents Temporarily Sealed

The special tprosecutor investigating how prosecutors and police handled the investigation of David Koschman's death has concluded the statute of limitations prevents any prosecutions of actions taken in 2004 by the Chicago Police Department and the Cook County State's Attorney's Office and that there is insufficient evidence to prove any state criminal law violations by police working the case more recently.

On Wednesday, former U.S. Attorney Dan Webb, the special prosecutor, filed a 162-page report explaining the evidence gathered in a review of more than 22,000 documents and in interviews with 146 witnesses. At Webb's request, Cook County Circuit Court Judge Michael P. Toomin placed the report under temporary seal to insure that publicity about its contents does not impair the fairness of the upcoming trial of Richard J. Vanecko.

Vanecko faces trial on a charge of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the death of Mr. Koschman. As a result of the first stage of Webb's investigation, a Cook County Grand Jury in December issued an indictment against Vanecko, a nephew of former Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley.

The contents of Webb's report are to be released to the public at the conclusion of Vanecko's trial. Webb's work was spurred by a December 2011 suit filed on behalf of Mr. Koschman's mother, Nanci, and his aunt and uncle. The family was represented by attorneys from the Roderick and Solange MacArthur Justice Center and the People's Law Office in Chicago.

Although the report is under temporary seal, "reading between the lines" of Webb's statement is the fact that wrongdoing was discovered but that it cannot be prosecuted, said Locke Bowman, Director of the MacArthur Justice Center.

"What seems very clear to us is that the special prosecutor, in effect, is saying that in 2004 there was criminal misconduct and that there is evidence from which a reasonable fact-finder can conclude that there was criminal wrongdoing," Bowman said.

"This is not a surprise to us," Bowman said. "When Mr. Vanecko was charged some months ago, it was clear at that time that something had gone terribly wrong in the investigation into David Koschman's death. According to the police version of the investigation into his death in 2004, Vanecko was absolved. If Vanecko is now charged with a crime, then it's clear that something went terribly wrong in the investigation that took place in 2004.

"It's also clear from the report that although there may not be proof beyond a reasonable doubt of police misconduct in 2011, that nonetheless there are serious concerns about wrong-doing at that time," Bowman said.

Bowman acknowledged that there may be grounds for sealing the report until the jury in the Vanecko case has reached its verdict.

"More than anything, Nanci Koschman wants to see justice done on behalf of David and on behalf of the citizens of Cook County," Bowman said. "There's no doubt that there are legitimate concerns about Mr. Vanecko's fair trial rights. Indeed, the special prosecutor points out himself that the evidence in this sealed report is so powerful and so potentially damning that it could generate sufficient public controversy to impair Mr. Vanecko's rights."

Bowman also emphasized that the sealing must be temporary and said the public has a need to know what was learned during Webb's investigation.

"It may be there are no police or prosecutors who at this point can be criminally charged with wrongdoing," he said. "That does not end the public discussion.

"There are questions that Nanci Koschman and all of us need in order to bring closure to this incident," Bowman said. "We need to know why it was that this investigation was derailed. We need to know who called who and when, and we need to know the facts and circumstances that resulted in a bogus investigation."

Special Prosecutor Issues Report in the Matter of the Death of David Koschman, (pdf), Release from Dan K. Webb, Special Prosecutor for Cook County

Motion to Temporarily Seal Special Prosectuor's Report, (pdf), Dan K. Webb, Special Prosecutor for Cook County

Order, (pdf) Michael P. Toomin, Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County

Editorial: No charges in Koschman case, but still plenty of stink, Chicago Sun-Times

Editorial: Clout and the Koschman case, Chicago Tribune

No New Indictments in Koschman Case, Special Prosecutor Says, Ward Room blog, NBC 5 Chicago

Updated - 09/23/13


Special Prosecutor Indicts Nephew of Former Chicago Mayor in Death of David Koshman

The Roderick MacArthur Justice Center’s pursuit of justice for the family of David Koschman reached a watershed in December with the announcement that a Cook County Special Prosecutor had charged a nephew of former Chicago Mayor Richard Daley in connection with Koschman’s death.

Special Prosecutor Dan Webb, appointed to investigate the case after RMJC successfully petitioned for an independent probe into Koschman’s death, indicted Richard J. Venecko for involuntary manslaughter.  Vanecko is a nephew to former Mayor Richard Daley, Cook County Board Commissioner John Daley, and Bill Daley, former Chief of Staff to President Barak Obama. 

The indictment came more than eight years after Koschman died from trauma he sustained after Vanecko, then 29, punched him outside a Chicago bar.  Eyewitness testimony and a re-opened police investigation concurred that Venecko delivered the blow – the only punch exchanged between the two men who didn’t know each other – that caused Koschman’s death. 

But Venecko was never held accountable by Chicago Police or the Cook County State’s Attorneys Office, raising concerns that his political connections deterred authorities from conducting a thorough investigation.  Those concerns mushroomed into an outcry after the Chicago Sun-Times published a series of investigative reports into glaring irregularities in the way police and prosecutors conducted the probe.   Propelled by the Sun-Times coverage, David Koschman’s mother, Nanci, asked RMJC to help her ferret out the truth. 

“Nanci Koshman has said for years that she is interested, more than anything else, in having an understanding of what happened to cause the death of her son more than eight years ago,” said RMJC Legal Director Locke Bowman.  “The filing of these charges is the beginning of the process that will lead to some of answers.  

“But many questions linger in the wake of today’s indictment,” Bowman continued.  “The first of those questions is why has this taken so long?  What caused this investigation to drag out for so long?  And did this delay have anything to do with the fact that the defendant was a member of the most powerful political family in Cook County?  We’re gratified that Special Prosecutor Webb has vowed to pursue answers to these questions, as well”

In a news release announcing the indictment, Webb said that his probe into potential wrongdoing in the original Koschman investigation will continue "at a vigorous pace."

The indictment and Webb’s ongoing investigation are the result of an effort RMJC began in late 2011 to convince the Circuit Court of Cook County that an independent review of the case was warranted.  That request was granted in May by Cook County Circuit Court Judge Michael P. Toomin.  In authorizing the appointment of the Special Prosecutor, Toomin wrote that the “system has failed” David Koschman, and to deny [RMJC’S] request would “cap indignity with injustice.”

Nanci Koshman said the indictment represented the first crucial step toward rectifying that injustice.  “It’s a good day,” she said.  “I wanted David’s name cleared.  I’m going to finally go tell David tomorrow that he can be at peace.”

Updated - 12/12/12


Special Prosecutor Appointed to Investigate the Homicide of David Koschman

In an historic ruling on Friday, April 6, Judge Michael Toomin disqualified State's Attorney Anita Alvarez and ruled that a special prosecutor would be appointed to investigate the death of David Koschman as a result of a blow struck by Richard J. Vanecko, nephew of former Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Judge Toomin did not mince his words: "The system has failed [Koschman] up to this point," he said. "To deny the request [for a special prosecutor] would be to cap indignity with injustice."

In December 2011, the Roderick MacArthur Justice Center filed a petition on behalf of Koschman's family calling for a special prosecutor to investigate whether criminal charges should be brought in the homicide of Koschman, alleging that the investigation into Koschman's death may have been influenced by Vanecko's relationship to Daley.

"There are occasional moments when we can be truly proud of our judiciary, truly proud of our system, and this is one such moment," said Locke Bowman, attorney for the Koschman family and legal director of the Justice Center. "The appointment of a special prosecutor is the first step to correcting an injustice and proving that everyone, regardless of status or class, is equal under the law."

David Koschman died in May 2004 after he and Vanecko engaged in an argument on a sidewalk near Division and Dearborn in Chicago during which Vanecko punched Koschman in the face, causing Koschman to fall and strike his head on the pavement. Koschman died 11 days after the assault from complications from blunt head trauma.

The petition to appoint a special prosecutor alleged that irregularities in the investigation, including false official records and missing files, require an independent investigation into whether individuals in the Chicago Police Department and the Cook County State's Attorney's Office may have obstructed the investigation. Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez opposed the appointment of a special prosecutor but says she will not appeal the decision.

This is the second time in 10 years that a special prosecutor has been appointed to investigate a case in Cook County. A special prosecutor was last appointed in 2002 to investigate claims of police torture under former Area 2 Police Commander Jon Burge. The petition to appoint a special prosecutor in the Burge torture cases was also spearheaded by the MacArthur Justice Center.

Channel 7 coverage of Judge Toomin's decision: Special prosecutor ordered in Daley nephew case (video)

Chicago Tribune story: Judge Oks special prosecutor in Koschman case

Sun-Times opinion pieces:

Updated - 04/10/12


MacArthur Justice Center Files Petition to Appoint Special Prosecutor in Koschman Homicide

The Roderick MacArthur Justice Center filed a petition calling for a special prosecutor to investigate whether criminal charges should be brought in the homicide of David Koschman against Richard J. (R.J.) Vanecko, former Mayor Richard M. Daley's nephew. The petition, filed on behalf of Koschman's family, alleges that the investigation into Koschman's death may have been influenced by Vanecko's relationship to Daley.

The petition alleges that in the early morning hours of April 25, 2004, David Koschman and R.J. Vanecko engaged in an argument on a sidewalk near Division and Dearborn in Chicago during which Vanecko punched Koschman in the face, causing Koschman to fall and strike his head on the pavement. Koschman died 11 days later from complications from blunt head trauma. His death was ruled a homicide by the Cook County Medical Examiner.

According to the petition, irregularities in the investigation, including false official records and missing files, require an independent investigation into whether individuals in the Chicago Police Department and the Cook County State's Attorney's Office may have obstructed the investigation.

The petition was filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County.

Chicago Sun Times story: Koschman mom: Fighting for son, 'want him to know I did everything'

5 NBC Chicago: Petitioners Explain Koschman Filing

Chicago Sun-Times editorial: Judge should heed a mother's fair plea

Updated - 12/20/2011