Oct. 03--A Cook County judge said Friday that he will examine nearly 900 photos and videos found on a Motorola tablet computer at the center of a scandal in a high-profile attempted murder case that has already cost a prosecutor his job.
The Motorola Xoom tablet belongs to Talaina Cureton, mother of Paris Sadler, who is charged with the 2012 attempted murder of Chicago police Officer Del Pearson. Cureton used the device to secretly record a prosecutor questioning her the day after the shooting, a bombshell fact that was disclosed in court in August on a day the judge was to rule on a defense motion to throw out Sadler's arrest.
Two weeks later, State's Attorney Anita Alvarez fired Assistant State's Attorney Joseph Lattanzio after the video recordings showed he allegedly lied under oath during a court hearing. Friday was the first time the case was back in court since the firing of the veteran prosecutor.
Judge Thaddeus Wilson said Friday that he would review the 858 photos and 32 videos made or saved on the tablet between Jan. 3, 2012, and March 24, 2012, and hand over to lawyers on both sides any that are relevant to the case.
Prosecutors said Friday that they wanted access to the tablet to see if, among other things, it contained photos of Sadler with the gun used to shoot Pearson. They also want access to emails Cureton sent on the device since January 2015.
Sadler's attorneys objected, saying they are routinely denied access to Chicago police hard drives when there are gaps in a video-recorded interrogation or squad-car video.
Kevin Ochalla, an assistant public defender, asked the judge if the defense team would be given access to detectives' files in Area Two headquarters, where Cureton was questioned March 20, 2012.
"If you pull enough threads, we may get there," Wilson replied.
Both Cureton and Lattanzio are expected to testify in court later this month, but it's unclear how much they will say under oath. Both have hired private attorneys.
Alvarez said last month that she had referred Lattanzio's case to the state attorney general's office to decide if criminal charges should be brought.
After learning of the recording, Wilson held off his ruling and reopened a hearing on whether prosecutors will be able to use key evidence seized in a search of the home Sadler shared with his mother. A .38-caliber revolver found hidden behind a wall in the basement where Sadler lived was later linked by a ballistics expert to Pearson's shooting.
Sadler's mother testified during the hearing that officers entered her South Side home uninvited. Her statement, handwritten by Lattanzio, included a reference to her asking for a lawyer before she would allow police to search, she said.
But the statement produced by prosecutors in court -- which Lattanzio testified was the only statement he wrote -- included no such reference or any other edits or marks, drawing the judge's suspicion.
Lattanzio's attorney has blamed his client's faulty memory for any misstatements, saying he is not guilty of perjury.
sschmadeke@tribpub.com
