City officials agreed to pay $1 million to a Hyde Park man who spent 17 months in jail after being coerced into confessing that he murdered his mother six years ago.

Craig Futterman, an attorney for Corethian Bell, called the settlement "a powerful statement of vindication and victory."

Bell, who suffers from mental illness and mild retardation, confessed to the murder on videotape after police interrogated him for more than 50 hours, according to court documents. Bell said the officers became verbally abusive and at one point, an officer struck him in the head.

Forensics investigators collected blood and semen samples from the crime scene in July 2000, but the DNA was not examined until a Cook County judge ordered the tests in May 2001, according to court documents.

The Cook County's State's Attorney dropped charges against Bell in January 2002 because the DNA evidence linked another man to the crime.

"I thought I was going to be in jail for the rest of my life," said Bell, 30, who was flanked by his attorneys and friends Wednesday at a news conference.

He sued the Chicago Police Department in 2002 for malicious prosecution and emotional distress.

Futterman, of the Mandel Legal Aid Clinic at the University of Chicago, urged Chicago police to stop locking up "free people" in windowless rooms like the small cinder block interrogation room where Bell spent nearly two days.

Bell's case prompted Illinois lawmakers to pass legislation more than a year ago that require law enforcement officials to videotape murder suspects' entire interrogations and confessions.

But even if this measure had been in place, it would not have applied to Bell, who was taken to Area Two headquarters as a witness, not a suspect, Futterman said. Police are not required to record questioning of witnesses.

According to Locke Bowman, the legal director of the MacArthur Justice Center, which also represented Bell, the officers who questioned Bell still work for the Chicago Police Department. Bowman also said the Office of Professional Standards, the civilian arm of the department, took no action against the officers.

Police officials did not return telephone calls seeking comment.

Bell said he plans to go to college after he earns his high school equivalency certificate. He currently lives in a group home, where he gets help with daily activities like preparing meals and managing his medication.

"I think a million bucks will set me for life," Bell said.

The Chicago City Council still must approve the settlement, according to Futterman.