Attorney general candidate vows to tackle corruption after latest statehouse indictment

[September 23, 2022]  By Greg Bishop | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – With a week before early voting begins in Illinois, how to handle corruption plaguing the Illinois statehouse is an issue for attorney general candidates.

This week, state Sen. Emil Jones III, D-Chicago, became the 11th current or former state lawmaker to face federal charges in the past decade. Others include former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, who faces 22 federal counts to which he’s pleaded not guilty.

Attorney Thomas DeVore, the Republican challenging Democratic Attorney General Kwame Raoul, said most of those lawmakers charged were charged in the past few years and the incumbent isn’t doing anything.

“We have had zero indicted by our own attorney general,” DeVore said during a news conference this week. “He has not indicted anyone for public corruption.”

Messages to Raoul’s office seeking comment were not immediately returned.

“Why is that not prosecuted by the attorney general of the state of Illinois?” DeVore said. “He should absolutely be prosecuting those crimes instead of us relying on the federal government.”

More needs to be done by state officials, he said.

“I appreciate the federal government getting involved in trying to help eliminate corruption in our state. I wish our attorney general would do more,” DeVore said. “The people of Illinois make me the attorney general, we won’t need the federal government anymore. I will prosecute all of these corrupt public officials myself. I promise you.”

The Illinois Attorney General’s Office does have a Public Integrity Bureau that the agency says specializes in public corruption prosecution. They can prosecute crimes ranging from official misconduct “committed by state, county and city officials and employees to government vendor and grand fraud.”

Raoul’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for a list of public corruption prosecutions under his watch.

Separately, Gov. J.B. Pritzker demanded Jones, and another state Senator who is facing abuse allegations, step down.

“Integrity is essential to public service, and corruption for personal gain and abuse in private or public is unacceptable,” Pritzker said in a statement Thursday. “Illinoisans deserve to have elected leaders who are focused on representing them - not on holding office when facing serious and credible charges.”

Jones is accused of accepting bribes and state Sen. Michael Hastings, D-Frankfurt, is accused of abusing women, Pritzker said.

“They should answer the charges and have their day in court,” Pritzker said. “But in the best interests of their constituents, these men must resign from their offices. Resigning only their leadership roles falls short of what the public should expect. I want to send a clear message to the people of Illinois: corruption and abuse have no place here.”

Jones has no opponent in the November election.

Hastings’ Republican opponent Patrick Sheehan agreed with Pritzker that Hastings should resign from office.

"Taxpayers should not have to continue paying for Senator Hastings' unacceptable behavior, and they definitely should not have to continue paying his Senate salary while he deals with these serious allegations,” Sheehan said in a statement. “As a police officer for over 16 years, I have consistently defended women from their domestic abusers and harassers. I can tell you, the kind of people who conduct this type of behavior has no place in our government.”

Hastings has not been charged with a crime but his wife reportedly accused him of domestic abuse and he used public funds to settle harassment allegations in his statehouse office.

The Chicago Tribune reported Hastings called the allegations “baseless and without merit” and he will let voters decide whether he should remain in office.

Greg Bishop reports on Illinois government and other issues for The Center Square. Bishop has years of award-winning broadcast experience and hosts the WMAY Morning Newsfeed out of Springfield.