Convicted Cop Killer Granted Early Release For 1973 Murder
CHICAGO (CBS) -- After spending more than 40 years in prison for killing a Chicago police officer in 1973, a 58-year-old man has been granted parole, enraging Police Supt. Garry McCarthy and rank-and-file officers.
Officer Edward Barron and his partner were chasing Joseph Bigsby in September 1973, after a pair of armed robberies that netted him $4.10 and a watch. They confronted Bigsby in a gangway, and he opened fire, shooting Barron in the head. Barron's partner returned fire, wounding Bigsby, who was later convicted of murder, attempted murder, and armed robbery.
Bigsby, who was 16 at the time of the murder, was sentenced to 200 years in prison in 1975, and his original expected parole date was not until June 2067, according to the Illinois Department of Corrections.
More than 20 police officers boarded buses to Springfield on Thursday to attend a parole hearing before the Illinois Prisoner Review Board, to urge board members not to grant Bigsby early release.
He previously had been denied parole, but was granted early release from prison on Thursday.
McCarthy called Thursday's decision by the Illinois Prisoner Review Board an "absolute travesty."
"As a result of their incomprehensible decision, Bigsby, who has served less than 40 percent of his original sentence, will now be able to enjoy the freedoms and pleasures of life, things which he readily denied Officer Barron when he murdered him," McCarthy said in a written statement.
"Today's decision is an affront to the entire law enforcement community but especially to the dedicated men and women of the Chicago Police Department, who risk their lives and personal well-being daily as they strive to better our city and ensure the safety of our communities."
The Chicago Fraternal Order of Police called Bigsby's parole "a major slap to the face of the entire law enforcement community."
"It never ceases to amaze us how a group of so-called educated people could sit in a room and listen to the stories of loss from the families of the fallen heroes. They hear the first-hand accounts of the horrors from the partners and responding units, and then take into account a litany of overwhelming reasons why a monster should never walk among us again. Then they completely disregard any consideration of what's right, and lose all connection to common sense, by voting to let a person like this walk out of the cage he was meant to die in," Chicago FOP President Dean Angelo Sr. said.
Prisoner Review Board attorney Ken Tupy defended the board's decision, noting Bigby's age at the time of the shooting.
"He was 16 years of age. The crime, he served over 41 years inside the Department of Corrections. He's had an excellent institutional adjustment," he said.
Tupy said it was a difficult decision, but Bigsby's age loomed large in the case. Bigsby also expressed remorse for his crime, and educated himself while behind bars. He has plans to move to Maryland now that he's out of prison.
