State trooper uncovers police misconduct that leads to exoneration for convicted men

State trooper uncovers police misconduct that leads to exoneration for convicted men
Lt. Michale Callahan's review of a 1986 murder led to the exoneration of Randy Steidl and Herb Whitlock. Photo courtesy of Land of Lincoln Press
State trooper uncovers police misconduct that leads to exoneration for convicted men
Lt. Michale Callahan's review of a 1986 murder led to the exoneration of Randy Steidl and Herb Whitlock. Photo courtesy of Land of Lincoln Press

State trooper uncovers police misconduct that leads to exoneration for convicted men

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In 2000, Lt. Michale Callahan of the Illinois State Police was asked to review an old case. It involved the 1986 murder of a newlywed couple, Dyke and Karen Rhoads. Eyewitness testimony helped convict two men: Randy Steidl and Herb Whitlock.

Callahan’s efforts helped to discredit that testimony. Steidl and Whitlock were both released from prison, both after serving over a decade for the crime. Lt. Michale Callahan spoke to Eight Forty-Eight about the experience. His book about the investigation of the Rhoads’ case is Too Politically Sensitive.

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