In a surprise move, high-powered attorney Dan Webb, the special prosecutor who indicted a nephew of former Mayor Richard Daley in a controversial 2004 death, decided he won’t bill Cook County anymore for legal fees for his team’s work on the case.
The announcement came Thursday afternoon from Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans, who indicated in a statement that Webb had notified the County Board that his team of attorneys and support staff was working for free as of the first of the year. Webb will continue to charge for “reasonable expenses.”
No explanation was given for the sudden change, but the decision could potentially save the county hundreds of thousands of dollars if the investigation drags on.
Records show Webb’s law firm, Winston & Strawn, has billed the County Board $802,421 since he was appointed special prosecutor in April. The County Board is scheduled to vote Tuesday on the latest bill of $216,683.
Daley’s nephew Richard J. Vanecko was indicted in December on a charge of involuntary manslaughter in the death of David Koschman in a drunken confrontation on the Near North Side in 2004.
Koschman, 21, had been drinking in the Rush Street night life district early on April 25, 2004, when he and friends quarreled with a group that included Vanecko. During the altercation, Koschman was knocked to the street, hitting the back of his head. He died 11 days later.
Vanecko has pleaded not guilty and intends to fight the charges at trial.
In the meantime, Webb’s legal team continues its inquiry into how Chicago police and Cook County prosecutors handled their investigation. The case was reopened in 2011 after an investigative series by the Chicago Sun-Times raised questions about whether authorities intentionally concealed evidence for political reasons.
