Christopher Ellis spent 11 years in prison for attacking Chicago police officers who had a documented history of framing other Black men for identical crimes.

The charges were fabricated.

Ellis was 31 when officers stopped him on East 79th Street for an alleged seatbelt violation in November 2014.

When he declined to let them search his car, they pulled him out, used a taser on him, and handcuffed him on the ground.

The Charges

Police charged Ellis with two counts of resisting arrest and 12 counts of aggravated battery on a peace officer.

They impounded his car but found no marijuana.

An independent witness, Demetrius Ward, saw the entire incident from the store where he worked and told officers that Ellis did nothing to resist arrest.

Ellis's trial attorney never called Ward to testify.

The Pattern

Officer James Hunt had eight misconduct accusations filed against him in less than six years, including complaints of use of force, false arrest, and racial abuse.

Hunt accumulated 28 use of force reports between 2016 and July 2020, along with at least 24 civilian complaints for racist language, excessive force, illegal searches and false arrests.

The Cook County State's Attorney placed Hunt on a "do-not-call" list because of problems with his past testimony.

The Students

Law students at the University of Chicago took on Ellis's case in 2022.

They found Ward and secured his statement confirming that Ellis never battered the police officers.

They also uncovered video evidence of one officer bragging "I kill motherfuckers" after shooting another young Black man in the back, killing him.

The students performed statistical analyses showing both officers had been accused of more misconduct and committed more violence against community members than their fellow CPD officers.

Exoneration

Judge Carol Howard vacated Ellis's convictions in July 2025, concluding his trial attorney had been ineffective in failing to present impeachment evidence against the officers.

The state dismissed all charges against Christopher Ellis on November 14, 2025.

He had served 11 years for crimes that never happened.