It matters because the Burge trial is still ongoing. If not for Blago, it would be the big story in Chicago. The guy is innocent and no one disputes that at this point.
Look, if you are put off because of that paragraph that’s too bad.
Dohrn has a history of supporting obviously guilty murderers because her politics involved killing off whoever she felt was unimportant. Charles Manson and Black Panthers like Bobby Seale, Huey Newton, and Eldridge Cleaver were her heroes. Her claim that Clements is innocent is convincing evidence that he is guilty as hell.
Then there's this paragraph from the article at your link:
One day that summer he went to his aunt's home to play with his cousins. His aunt was also taking care of a foster child, Ramona Patton. Unbeknownst to Clements, Patton had spent time in juvenile detention for killing a playmate a few years earlier. Clements cousins were playing double dutch with Patton when he arrived at his aunt's home. As Clements watched, he noticed that some money dropped out of Patton's pocket. Clements, in an inconspicuous manner, stepped on the cash and put about $20 in his pocket. When Patton noticed the money missing, she accused everyone there including Clements. Patton screamed expletives and accusations mercilessly at the rest of the group but she was unable to get Clements to confess to his crimes. What Clements didn't know was that Patton would soon exact revenge.
Bullshit on every level. Patton committed a murder in the 1960s and somehow was let out before she reached majority age. Not likely. Clements is an admitted thief and liar according to his own story. But Patton decided to blame him for a quadruple murder even though she couldn't figure out who stole her money. And of course, the cops just piled on after a convicted murderer said that Clements did it. No need for an investigation or any of that stuff.
Clements' story is a load of crap. He'll probably end up with a clean record, and since he sounds like a total sociopath, he already has a clean conscience.