Posted by Gary Ellison on 8/15/18

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I am Gary Ellison, a black inmate in Illinois wrongly convicted of m
ted of murder. I was framed and I have obtained seemingly unusable p
usable proof of this. There is a brief laying out the following fact
ing facts in detail (including documents).
In 2001 my father and I visited a restaurant outside of Chicago. Wh
ago. When entering I noticed a wallet on the sidewalk and my father
father grabbed it. I never possessed it nor saw what was inside. M
side. My father is an addict and has been convicted of identity the
ity theft, including my own identity.
Days later my father brought a car to me and asked me for money to
ney to borrow it. Although an addict it was not unusual for him to
him to have a car. This car, however, belonged to the owner of the
of the wallet. I did not know.
My father was then taped using the victim's ATM card. Shortly the
y thereafter the victim's body (Robert Pierce, a white man) was f
was found duct taped in a river. My father became a suspect becau
because of his use of the ATM card. But he refused to confess and
s and the state police had no evidence otherwise. They followed u
wed up on the victim's car and sought me out. I was told that I w
t I was not a suspect but they wanted me to lie that I saw my fat
y father enter the victim's house. I refused.
I was repeatedly arrested and "interrogated". The police became
ame enraged. I was told if I didnt cooperate they would convict
ict ME of the crime as punishment. Still I didn't cooperate.
The police then arranged for me to unwittingly come into posses
session of multiple machine guns. I was forced to go to prison.
on. Either prior to or after my imprisonment a detective contac
tacted IDOC director Brad Curie and arranged for an informant t
t to interrogate me. The informant, Tommie Armstrong, was a hom
homosexual and I avoided him at all costs. IDOC therefore arran
ranged for a segregation tier to be emptied and I was forced in
into a cell with Armstrong.

The police had this cell under electronic surveillance. Armst
trong attempted to lure me into homosexual activity (as a way
y for the police to gain leverage over me I believe) but I re
efused. He then attempted to question me indirectly and when
this failed he told me that he heard my friends say that I m
murdered someone. I told him flat out that I had no involveme
ent in any murder and that I knew nothing about a murder. I b
became suspicious. I searched the cell and found a bud shaped
d microphone.
I was immediately taken out the cell and to another cell. I
was then handcuffed to the floor spread eagle. For days I wa
s tortured—kicked, punched, suffocated, not allowed to sleep, not
, not allowed to use the bathroom for long stretches, not given f
ven food or water (only coffee) while being told this treatment w
ent would stop if I confessed to the murder or implicated my fath
father. I refused.
Later, the informant Armstrong was taken to the grand jury. He t
He told them that I confessed to throwing the victim's body in a
in a river. He repeated this at my trial. The lead detective tes
testified he made recordings of me in prison which prove my gui
guilt. Neither these recordings nor the court orders authorizin
izing surveillance were disclosed. When discussing the informant
mant who participated in the recordings, Armstrong, the state re
e referred to as a "confidential informant" even though Armstron
trong took the stand and testified in open court. Also, my fathe
ather testified falsely that I said I killed someone.
My lawyer mounted no defense saying the witnesses were not cred
redible and there was no evidence. I was convicted. I appealed
ed arguing that the undisclosed recordings prove the detective
ve and Armstrong's testimony false. The appellate court called
ed the case circumstancial and denied my appeal, stating there
re was no evidence showing that the informant on the tapes was
as witness Armstrong.

For years, I've tried to obtain the tapes to prove that the
detective lied and had the witnesses fabricate testimony. Al
though I was able to get the courts orders and other related
documents the state refuses to release the tapes. I sued pu
rsuant to the Freedom of Information Act and the lead prosec
utor submitted an affidavit that states the tapes were blank
and "of no evidentiary value"—contradicting his own witness'
' testimony. This is a second, more specific report on the ta
apes.
Here's my problem: I CANNOT GET A HARING ON THIS ISSUE. Each
time I file a petition including this and other similar evi
dence—THE DOCUMENTED EVIDENCE DISAPPEARS AFTER BEING FILED.
Once, being pro se, I amended a petition to replace the cour
t orders, police affidavits and a previous FOI response that
the tapes are blank. The judge allowed the state to not res
pond to the petition's allegation, that the state presented
false testimony, dismissed the case and when I went to appea
l—the documents were again missing from the common law record
d! Appeal dismissed on procedural grounds.
Clearly someone(s) are working to keep an open-and-shut issue f
e from ever being ruled on because it may expose the prison int
interrogation. I understand that exculpatory, material evidence
nce was withheld but how do I secure a hearing under these circ
ircumstances? What do I do? Can anyone help?
Plz, plz, plz review the brief and evidence attached.
Email me at Garricofellison@gmail or write me directly at Ell
lison, K81210, PO Box 1000, Menard, IL. 62259

Wrongfully convicted, 8/15/18, by Gary Ellison.

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