The 7th Circuit has turned down an appeal by Chicago's Jon Burge, who commanded a large portion of the Chicago police force until 1993. His original case involved his knowledge (or lack of) about the torture and abuse of suspects by his police department. He was fired. But in 2007, he was caught up in a federal indictment for lying and perjury. Currently in a federal prison, Burge's requests for a new trial were dismissed by the 7th Circuit judges, who saw all his arguments as spurious technicalities. So the guy had a determined lawyer, but an unsuccessful one. Maybe police officers shouldn't put plastic bags over suspects' heads and suffocate them, or hit them with typewriters. Those aren't technicalities.