Federal prosecutors are asking for 10 years in prison for former Chicago Ald. Edward Burke, arguing in a lengthy filing late Monday that the 80-year-old Democratic machine stalwart was “steeped in corruption” and highly adept at abusing his office for personal gain.
“Again and again, Burke used his significant political power to solicit and receive bribes from entities with business before the city of Chicago—all so he could obtain legal business for his private law firm and financially benefit his close personal associates,” prosecutors wrote in their 51-page filing. “To this day, Burke has expressed no remorse for his crimes; indeed, he continues to deny he did a single thing wrong.”
The sentence requested by the U.S. attorney’s office would mean that Burke could very well die in prison. But a lengthy term behind bars is warranted, prosecutors say, given the “mountain” of evidence in the case — including hundreds of undercover recordings — that captured Burke in his own words and make it “obvious that Burke was no novice when it came to corruption.”
“Burke operated as a seasoned professional when it came to identifying new potential clients for his law firm and exploiting his power and position in order to secure their business,” prosecutors wrote.
To bolster their argument about the cost of Burke’s crimes, prosecutors estimated the overall financial loss he caused amounted to nearly $830,000.
Shortly before the midnight deadline, lawyers for Burke asked in a filing of their own for an “alternative to incarceration” such as a period of home confinement, writing Burke is a “fundamentally decent man” who did a lot of good for his city over a six-decade career.
They also argued the trial evidence showed Burke “did not receive a single penny” from his offenses, “nor did he cause any serious financial harm to any party.” Even the witnesses who were allegedly being shaken down testified Burke’s demeanor was “respectful, professional, and friendly—never aggressive, threatening, nor intimidating,” Burke’s filing stated.
Burke’s sentencing before U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall on June 24 will be closely watched in Illinois political circles. He’s the most powerful politician to face jail time here since former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert was given 15 months in 2016 for paying hush money payments to cover up decades-old sexual abuse of minors.
Burke’s fate will certainly be of keen interest to former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, who faces his own racketeering trial in October. Madigan, who like Burke was a Southwest Side Democrat steeped in the old Chicago political machine, was dethroned in 2021 in the midst of the federal investigation following a nationwide 36-year record run as the leader of his legislative chamber.
Meanwhile, a jury in December found Burke, the longtime leader of the powerful City Council Finance Committee, guilty of a series of schemes to use his considerable City Hall clout to try and win business from developers for his private property tax law firm.
Among them were efforts to woo the New York-based developers of the massive, $600 million renovation of the Old Post Office, extorting the Texas owners of a Burger King who were seeking to renovate a restaurant in Burke’s 14th Ward, and intervening on behalf of Charles Cui, a developer in Portage Park who wanted help getting a pole sign approved for a new Binny’s Beverage Depot location.
Burke was also found guilty of attempted extortion for threatening to hold up a fee increase for the Field Museum because he was angry the museum had ignored an internship application from his goddaughter, who is the daughter of former 32nd Ward Ald. Terry Gabinski, Burke’s longtime friend.
The jury acquitted Burke on one count of conspiracy to commit extortion related to the Burger King project.
Also convicted was Cui, whose sentencing is set for next month.
The jury acquitted Burke’s longtime 14th Ward aide, Peter Andrews, of all counts alleging he helped Burke pressure the Burger King owners into hiring Burke’s law firm by shutting down their restaurant renovation.
Burke’s high-profile, six-week trial featured some 38 witnesses and more than 100 secretly recorded videos and wiretapped recordings, offering a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at one of Chicago’s top political power brokers at work.
At the heart of the case were dozens of wiretapped phone calls and secretly recorded meetings made by Daniel Solis, the former 25th Ward alderman who turned FBI mole after being confronted in 2016 with his own wrongdoing.
In closing arguments, prosecutors put up on large video screens a series of now-notorious statements made by Burke on the recordings. Among them: “The cash register has not rung yet,” “They can go (expletive) themselves,” and “Did we land the tuna?”
Several letters in support of Burke were made public last month, including one from former mayoral candidate Paul Vallas who wrote Burke’s “professional impact on Chicago is a great legacy.”
In their filing late Monday, Burke’s attorneys attached dozens of more letters of support from people of all walks of life, including former U.S. Attorney Dan Webb, ex-Chicago police Superintendent Garry McCarthy, and current and former City Council colleagues like Ald. Nicholas Sposato, 38th, and former 40th Ward Ald. Patrick O’Connor.
Burke’s wife Anne, formerly the chief justice of the Illinois Supreme Court, described Burke as a devoted husband and father who encouraged her to finish college and go to law school. He also helped “a hundred or more” struggling city kids with tuition and jobs, she wrote.
“He has always seen his role as taking care of people, whether they need money, or a job, or help fighting insurance companies,” she wrote. “… I am devastated by the prospect that I will not be with Ed at the end of our lives. Please find compassion through the Holy Spirit in your decision.”
Webb, a high-profile litigator who defended former Illinois Gov. George Ryan, said he has been personal friends with the Burke family for 40 years and urged the judge to “evaluate the totality of the person being sentenced.”
“At no time did I ever see any indication that he was other than a dedicated public servant, always interested in serving the citizens of the City of Chicago,” Webb wrote.
McCarthy wrote that while he respects the jury’s decision it is “hard to reconcile the Ed Burke that I know with the allegations in the case.”
“A lifetime of service by the Burke family has come crashing down on them,” McCarthy wrote. “The public humiliation has been overwhelming. Fifty-four years as the longest serving Alderman in Chicago’s history. Hundreds, if not thousands of personal touches to make life better for his constituents. The strain on Mr. Burke has at times been unbearable, and yet he has put on a brave face for his family.”
Even Bill Kurtis, the longtime broadcaster, said he followed Burke’s “devotion to his role on the City Council and his dedication to his constituents that made a lasting impression.”
“I have thought Ed Burke was the model of what an alderman should be,” Kurtis wrote. “I still think that.”
In their filing on Monday, however, prosecutors quoted the late U.S. District Judge James Zagel, who in sentencing former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich to 14 years in prison, said he was responsible for corruption that tore the fabric of the state.
Prosecutors said Burke did similar damage, and that a lengthy sentence was necessary to deter others — including some of those very supporters who wrote letters singing Burke’s praises.
“Burke no longer holds public office. But it is apparent from the character letters received so far that there are those who lurk in the bowels of city government and walk in its corridors of power who are still strong allies of Burke,” the prosecution filing stated. “It would be naïve to think that there is anything stopping Burke, the consummate political insider with his coterie of misguided friends and well-wishers, from engaging in the same type of conduct in conjunction with public officials in the future.”
Burke’s lawyers also argued his age and declining health should qualify him for a lighter sentence. Burke was previously treated for prostate cancer, suffered a mini-stroke in 2018 that caused him to fall, has recently experienced seizures and currently suffers from hypertension, anxiety and “depressed mood,” according to the defense filing.
“At age eighty and with several serious acute and chronic medical issues, Mr. Burke would be an expensive prisoner to house for any length of time, and even a short sentence is likely to amount to a death sentence,” his attorneys wrote.
Prosecutors called that notion “dead wrong.”
“High-level public officials in this city and in this state like Burke need to receive a simple, undiluted, and unequivocal warning loud and clear: You will pay dearly—regardless of your age—if you choose the dark path of corruption that Burke decided to walk for many years,” the prosecution filing stated.
jmeisner@chicagotribune.com
