By Rummana Hussain
The Chicago Sun-Times
Ricky Shaw was an El Rukn and Melvin Jones was a leader of the Gangster Disciples when the convicted felons met at Cook County Jail’s Division 1 in 1987.
But despite their memberships in different gangs, the two struck up a friendship and often ate their morning meals together, Shaw testified Monday.
The inmates were so close, Shaw said, Jones told Shaw his big secret: He made up abuse allegations against former Chicago Police Cmdr. Jon Burge.
Shaw, now 44, also said Jones recruited him and Aaron Patterson, another eventual Burge accuser, to find fresh inmates who would be willing to falsely say they were tortured at Area 2.
“He [Jones] said he was never abused. He never got electroshocked, but that there were other people who had already made the claims. He said he had lawyers and everybody was dying to get on the case, that there were movie deals and book deals,” said Shaw, testifying for the defense at Burge’s perjury and obstruction-of-justice federal trial.
Shaw, who came to court in shackles and a bright orange jumpsuit, is currently serving a 50-year sentence for four armed robberies. He has been bounced from various prisons for lying to correctional employees and other infractions, Assistant U.S. Attorney David Weisman said, attempting to chip away at Shaw’s credibility.
While at the Pinckneyville Correctional Center in 2002, Shaw told officials that other inmates had marijuana in their cell blocks but after a search was conducted, the only pot discovered was in Shaw’s possession, Weisman said, drawing laughter in U.S. District Judge Joan Lefkow’s courtroom.
“Yeah, but they shipped four people for it, including myself. I knew they had marijuana because they gave me a joint,” Shaw said.
Late last month, Jones, who is homeless, said Burge had placed a cocked gun to his head, hit him with a stapler and electroshocked him when questioning him about a murder in 1982.
Earlier Monday, Burge finished testifying in his own defense. He repeatedly denied beating suspects and said he only lied to them occasionally in order to get them to confess.
“I never met a sophisticated criminal,” Burge said, explaining his interrogation techniques.
When Weisman asked him if he was proud to take the law into his own hands, Burge replied, “That’s like asking when you stopped beating your wife. I’m proud of my reputation -- but not for taking the law into my own hands, counselor.”
Weisman then asked Burge if that was true, why he chose to name his boat “Vigilante.” Burge said he chose the name from a computer generated list.