Illinois corruption: Lifetime bans from government work needed for crooked public officials

Here's an Illinois corruption story from last month that I couldn't get to right away: Former Cook County commissioner Joseph Mario Moreno was indicted on federal bribery charges. Also charged was a former Chicago alderman, Ambrosio Medrano. In the 1990s, Medrano served 21 months in prison for betraying the public trust when he was caught accepting bribes. Now he's been charged with bribery again--while he was serving on Moreno's county staff--in other words, on the public payroll.

Because of his tawdry history, perhaps Moreno thought that the felon was just the right man to work for him. But I believe that people committing crimes while they are supposed to be working for the taxpayers should be banned from being employed at all levels of government work. Forever.

Such a measure is needed--along with stiffer prison sentences for corrupt public officials--if Illinois and other crooked jurisdictions are ever going to be straightened out.

Related post:

No place for decent people: More Illinois corruption stories

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