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 Chicago Ald. Carrie Austin and her chief of staff were indicted
July 1 by a federal grand jury, charged with conspiring to accept home
improvements from a construction contractor seeking city assistance on a
real-estate development in Austin’s 34th ward.
In exchange for aldermanic subsidies and support, charges state Austin and chief
staffer Chester Wilson Jr. received new kitchen cabinets, granite countertops,
sump pumps, bathroom tiling and a heating and cooling system at little to no
cost. Federal agents raided Austin’s office in 2019.
A federal grand jury in Chicago charged Austin, 72, with one count of conspiring
to use interstate facilities to promote bribery, two counts of using interstate
facilities to promote bribery and one count of lying to the FBI.
Wilson, 55, was also charged with conspiring to use interstate facilities to
promote bribery, two counts of using interstate facilities to promote bribery
and a separate count of theft of government funds.
 The indictment states Austin and Wilson first accepted personal benefits in 2016
from developers contracted by the city to build a $49.6 million residential
complex in Austin’s far South Side ward.
The 19-page indictment alleges Wilson texted a contractor a picture of kitchen
cabinets Austin wanted installed in her home on Dec. 8, 2016. A few months
later, Austin put her support behind resurfacing city streets in the
development. By late June, the contractor had paid $5,250 for Austin’s new
cabinets after falsely claiming they were for the development.
Austin charged with wielding her aldermanic influence since to approve payments
from Chicago infrastructure funds to the developer, line up building permits for
the development and fight to release $10.5 million in tax increment financing
payments from the city to the developer’s bank.
On July 5, 2017, Austin solicited a developer for “white or vein white” tiles
for a “five by seven” bathroom in her house, charges state. A day later, the
alderman accepted a developer’s offer to purchase “brand new” and “expensive”
sump pumps.
Wilson is also alleged to have sought personal favors from the construction
company for investment properties he owns.
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According to the indictment, during a phone call
about changes to tax increment financing that would benefit the
company months after the exchange, Wilson told the developer to
“make sure they do my heating and air.” The developer later offered
to pay for part of the HVAC system at Wilson’s rental property,
reportedly texting an associate, “If I get what I want next week,
it’s worth it.”
The theft charge against Wilson alleges he engaged
in a separate scheme to purchase food stamp benefits he did not
qualify for. Wilson allegedly obtained a benefits card by paying an
eligible recipient less than the card’s value in cash.
Austin is the second-longest-serving member on the city council
after Ald. Edward Burke, who was indicted on 14 countsof federal
racketeering charges in 2019. The indictment against him alleges he
used his aldermanic influence to steer business to his private law
firm.
Austin is now the third sitting City Council member under federal
investigation after criminal charges were levied against Chicago
Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson earlier this year. Thompson is the
grandson of the late Mayor Richard J. Daley and nephew of former
Mayor Richard M. Daley.
The seven-count indictment against Thompson accuses him of filing
false tax returns and lying to federal banking regulators about
$219,000 in payments he had received from Washington Federal Bank
for Savings before it closed in 2017.
Over 30 Chicago aldermen have been linked to corruption cases since
the 1970s.
Chicago ranks as the country’s most corrupt city and Illinois is the
second-most corrupt state in the nation. That corruption comes with
a heavy price tag for the state economy – costing Illinoisans more
than $550 million in foregone economic activity per year.
Not only does this cost all Illinois taxpayers, but it shakes
residents’ faith in state and local politicians. The ongoing federal
corruption probes are a reminder that Illinois has a lot of work
ahead to undo the political culture of corruption.
Chicagoans deserve city leaders who do business above the table, not
a leader who would trade their trust for a new countertop.
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