Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Wednesday, Nov 27, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller

* According to the Illinois State Board of Elections, embattled state Sen. Martin Sandoval (D-Chicago) has submitted his resignation effective January 1, 2020 at 12:01 pm.

That resignation date will trigger a special nominating petition filing period which, according to the Board, will run from December 3-9. The usual signature requirement will apply in order to qualify for the spring primary ballot.

The committeepersons in the district will also have 30 days after the resignation date to choose a replacement. That person will then serve until December 7, 2020, according to the board.

…Adding… The 13th and 23rd Wards have enough weighted vote combined to make the appointment on their own.

…Adding… More…

Sandoval’s offices and home were raided by the feds in Sept. 24. He hasn’t been seen since. But he’ll have gotten to collect four months’ worth of pay by the time he finally resigns. (By resigning on Nov. 1, Rep Luis Arroyo also got to be paid for November). https://t.co/1K2BGfRSrW

— Hannah Meisel (@hannahmeisel) November 27, 2019

* There had been rumors that Senate President John Cullerton would also submit a similar resignation this week and therefore trigger the special nominating petition filing period. But Board spokesperson Matt Dietrich said they’ve been told this won’t happen.

If Cullerton waits until after the filing period ends, Cullerton’s replacement will effectively be the party’s nominee and won’t face the voters until November of 2020. The district is overwhelming Democratic, however, so the appointment is the replacement, barring some divine intervention.

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Feds blame lies to grand jury for failure to bring charges against Dorothy Brown

Wednesday, Nov 27, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Welp…

JUST IN: According to a court filing made public today, federal prosecutors say they were unable to bring criminal charges against Dorothy Brown because of lies told by two of Brown's employees to a federal grand jury investigating bribes-for-jobs scheme in the clerk's office.

— Jason Meisner (@jmetr22b) November 27, 2019

* This information was sort of cryptically revealed last week…

Federal prosecutors want a judge to send a longtime Dorothy Brown worker to prison for more than two years after they said she lied to a grand jury, “threw a wrench in the wheels of justice and ground them to a halt.”

They also said the lies Beena Patel told the grand jury investigating job-selling allegations in the office of Brown, the clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, “directly impacted the government’s ability to charge those most culpable in the illegal activity.” […]

The feds’ investigation centered in part around a $15,000 payment by Sivasubramani Rajaram allegedly to land a job at the clerk’s office. The feds say Rajaram made a $5,000 cash payment at a meeting at the Corner Bakery across from the Daley Center. But when prosecutors asked Patel about that meeting in front of the grand jury, they said Patel gave misleading answers.

“She attempted to minimize her own involvement by stating that Rajaram slid the envelope containing $5,000 in cash directly to the Clerk,” McShain wrote in Tuesday’s memo.

Prosecutors said it was Patel who accepted the cash.

…Adding… Mike Cabonargi, candidate for Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County…

The Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County should be held to the highest ethical standards in order to foster access to justice. It should not be an office where Federal investigators spend years combing through allegations of corruption and lies, ultimately eroding the trust that should exist between the people of Cook County and the court system. It is time to usher in a new era of justice and credibility, and as a former Federal prosecutor, I’m the only candidate with a Reform Plan to do so.

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*** UPDATED x1 *** Illinois makes over $40 million a year selling drivers license info

Wednesday, Nov 27, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Vice publication Motherboard…

The California Department of Motor Vehicles is generating revenue of $50,000,000 a year through selling drivers’ personal information, according to a DMV document obtained by Motherboard.

DMVs across the country are selling data that drivers are required to provide to the organization in order to obtain a license. This information includes names, physical addresses, and car registration information. California’s sales come from a state which generally scrutinizes privacy to a higher degree than the rest of the country. […]

The document doesn’t name the commercial requesters, but some specific companies appeared frequently in Motherboard’s earlier investigation that looked at DMVs across the country. They included data broker LexisNexis and consumer credit reporting agency Experian. Motherboard also found DMVs sold information to private investigators, including those who are hired to find out if a spouse is cheating. It is unclear if the California DMV has recently sold data to these sorts of entities. […]

In an email to Motherboard, the California DMV said that requesters may also include insurance companies, vehicle manufacturers, and prospective employers.

Asked if the sale of this data was essential to the DMV, Marty Greenstein, public information officer at the California DMV, wrote that its sale furthers objectives related to highway and public safety, “including availability of insurance, risk assessment, vehicle safety recalls, traffic studies, emissions research, background checks, and for pre- and existing employment purposes.”

* I asked Secretary of State Jesse White’s spokesperson Dave Druker if Illinois does this. His response…

We provide information to eligible groups in accordance with the national Driver’s Privacy Protection Act and state law. Such sources include law enforcement, courts, government agencies, insurance companies and employers hiring people, especially for driving positions. All agreements are signed off by our legal department and must meet the highest standards for privacy protection, and cannot be used for commercial solicitation. The money generated goes to the state’s general revenue.

I followed up with a question of how much money this brings in…

It has generated $41 million this year, and it is expected to reach $44 million for the calendar year.

Thoughts?

*** UPDATE *** From Druker…

Hi Rich.

Just wanted to mention on the sale of driving records, social security numbers are not made available. Having driving records allows insurance companies to know the driving history of the person seeking insurance, and in the case of trucking companies, they are required to see an official driving record before they hire someone. Enjoy the weekend.

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*** UPDATED x1 *** Question of the day

Wednesday, Nov 27, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller

* As we’ve discussed twice before this month, the legal definition of when a contribution is received is the day it is deposited in the bank. So, we don’t know exactly when these contributions were actually made without checking with the respective campaigns or ComEd’s PAC…

Since the Oct. 15 bombshell of Anne Pramaggiore's retirement from @Exelon, its @ComEd subsidiary has donated to the campaigns of five state pols. Of the five, state Sen. Lightford, lead contender for Senate president, got the most #twill pic.twitter.com/fcfJRyRsBj

— Steve Daniels (@stevedaniels27) November 27, 2019

* The Question: Should ComEd’s political action committee stop contributing to legislators’ campaign funds for a while? If so, for how long? Make sure to explain your answer. Thanks.

*** UPDATE *** From Kimberly Lightford’s campaign…

Both checks mentioned by Steve Daniels were written on Sept 11, well before Anne Pramaggiore’s retirement.

The checks with redactions by me…