Rodriguez v. Cook Cty., No. 11-1401 (7th Cir. 2011)
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The appellate court reversed plaintiff's murder conviction. He filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983, accusing officers of violating his rights by influencing a witness to identify him as the killer. The Seventh Circuit affirmed judgment against him. Four years later, plaintiff filed a new suit against defendants he had sued before, plus prosecutors and the governmental entities that employed them. He had, in the meantime, obtained a "certificate of innocence," under 735 ILCS 5/2–702, enacted in 2008. The district court dismissed the claims against the original three defendants on the basis of claim preclusion and the claims against the others based on the two-year limitations period. The court also concluded that claims against the prosecutors under state law must be dismissed for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, because federal courts follow state immunity rules and Illinois wants claims of this kind to be presented to its Court of Claims. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, holding that the state-issued certificate did not create a new claim, restarting the clock and overriding the rules of issue and claim preclusion.
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