Since 1973 over 30 current or former members of the Chicago City Council have been convicted of federal crimes. There are only fifty members of this notorious legislative body. Of the current batch, 46 of them are Democrats with four being independents.
The latest alderman to be convicted, Patrick Daley Thompson, is a member of the Daley family. Richard J. Daley was mayor of Chicago from 1955-1976, his son, Richard M., was mayor from 1989-2011. Thompson is the grandson of the elder Daley and the nephew of the younger one. John Daley is the Democratic committeeman of the 11th Ward, Thomspon, until his conviction Monday, was its alderman.
More from WGN-TV:
Alderman Patrick Daley Thompson was found guilty Monday in his federal tax fraud case. A jury, which only deliberated for a few hours, found the 11th Ward alderman guilty on all seven counts — five counts of willfully filing a false income tax return and two counts of knowingly making a false statement to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
Throughout the trial, federal prosecutors painted Daley Thompson as a liar and tax cheat in a case that centered around more than $250,000 in loans.
They said he knew exactly what he was doing. Prosecutors believe Daley Thompson only made one payment over the years on those loans and improperly claimed years of tax deductions for interest he never paid.Two sitting members of the City Council, Ed Burke (14th) and Carrie Austin (34th) are under indictment. Burke has been an alderman since 1969 and Austin since 1994.
Term limits anyone?
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