12062004 - News Article - Three more indictments in federal investigation - ROBERT CANTRELL

Three more indictments in federal investigation
NWI Times
Dec 6, 2004
The federal net known as Operation Restore Public Integrity has caught two more Lake County politicians for allegedly breaking the law. A Lake County government employee also was named in indictments announced last week.

The indictments revealed by U.S. Attorney Joseph Van Bokkelen confirm his pledge to vigorously continue the pursuit of public corruption in the region, an investigation that has been sorely needed for years to erase a perception -- and reputation -- that has tainted the region for years.

In the latest round of indictments, North Township Trustee Greg Cvitkovich was charged with tax fraud; Lake County Recorder Morris Carter, three counts of extortion; Lake County planner Jan Allison, extortion.

Cvitkovich, who rules one of the largest local government agencies in the county, is accused of illegally reducing his income by falsely reporting business deductions of $203,467 in 1999 and $165,865 in 2000.

Carter allegedly accepted three bribes totaling $1,800. The government alleges that Carter and Allison acted together in one instance to extort money from a government informant applying for a county contractor's license to do construction in an unincorporated area.

At the same time, Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter has made it clear he will pursue his civil lawsuit against East Chicago's outgoing mayor, Robert Pastrick, even after he leaves office, and 26 other city officials and politically connected businesses associated with his administration.

Carter alleges the Pastrick administration used public money to win re-election in 1999 by manipulating a sidewalk improvement project into a $24 million giveaway of city concrete and tree-trimming services.

At the time he filed the lawsuit, Carter, a Republican, was viliࣼed by Pastrick and other Democratic Party faithful for using the lawsuit to gain votes. Carter was running for re-election when he ࣼled the lawsuit.

Carter is right to continue pursuing the lawsuit. He really had no choice, as the "campaign gimmick" charge could have followed him for years.

As with the others caught up in Operation Restore Public Integrity before them, Cvitkovich, Carter and Allison are entitled to their day in court.

They are innocent unless proven guilty or if they choose to plead guilty.

In the meantime, the investigation is far from over. Stay tuned.

12032004 - News Article - Grand jury tags trustee, recorder - Lake County building official also named in U.S. indictment

Grand jury tags trustee, recorder 
Lake County building official also named in U.S. indictment 

Post-Tribune (IN)
December 3, 2004

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.proxy.portagelibrary.info/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_product=AWNB&p_theme=aggregated5&p_action=doc&p_docid=106DF69FDFB6747A&p_docnum=114&p_queryname=1

County officials are scrambling to figure out the extent of illegal contractor licenses after federal prosecutors on Thursday indicted County Recorder Morris Carter and assistant building commissioner Jan Allison on extortion charges. 

North Township Trustee Greg Cvitkovich was also indicted Thursday on tax evasion charges, stemming from alleged illegal deductions on his 1999 and 2000 federal income taxes. 

Cvitkovich, 48, of Highland, is one of several partners in a corporation with a contract to run East Chicago's recycling program. IRS agents found evidence of excessive tax deductions totalling $369,332 for Cvitkovich's private consulting company, called The C Corp. 

It is the alleged illegal contractor licenses uncovered by federal agents that has county officials most concerned. 

According to U.S. Attorney Joseph Van Bokkelen, Carter accepted $500 from an informant in July to change the results of a building contractor licensing test. Court documents say Carter paid Allison $100 to change the results so the person could obtain a license to work in the unincorporated areas of Lake County. 

"The informant would not have passed the examination if it were not for Jan Allison changing the results," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Kirsch. 

The U.S. Attorney's Office would not comment on who paid Carter, but sources inside Lake County government familiar with the case said the county recorder was caught up in a federal sting operation. Carter, who is scheduled to leave office at the end of the year, allegedly had accepted money from undercover agents to perform various acts. 

Carter, 50, of Gary, is charged with extortion for allegedly accepting $400 to purge a lien recorded in the Recorder's Office on Feb. 20, 2003. 

He is also charged with accepting $1,000 to provide a list of properties up for tax sale, though such lists are readily available from the county for a nominal copying fee. 

County officials were most alarmed by an apparent hole federal agents uncovered in the county's contractor licensing process. 

Allison, 66, of Gary, is charged with Carter in one count of extortion under the federal Hobbs Act. 

He has been with Lake County government for more than 25 years. He has been in charge of administering and grading the contractor licensing tests for at least 15 years, said Building Administrator Ben Nuzzo, Allison's supervisor. 

Lake County has issued 1,368 licenses to general contractors and various subcontractors working in the county. Once the contractors pass the test, they pay an annual renewal fee, Nuzzo said. 

Over the years the county has set up safeguards to guard against potential cheating on the tests, including changing the questions periodically. He remembered a contractor filing a Freedom of Information Act request to review the test questions. There also have been allegations of contractors using tape recorders during the test. 

Nuzzo conceded that no checks and balances were in place to prevent his office staff from changing the results of the tests. While he and other staff members have occasionally administered and helped grade the monthly examinations, Allison usually performed both of those duties, by himself, Nuzzo said. 

"There really aren't any safeguards, at least on changing the results," he said. 

At least five contractors are on the list for renewal at the Dec. 17 meeting of the Lake County Professional Licensing Board, he said. 

Caught off guard by the federal sting operation, County Commissioners attorney John Dull said the county Plan Commission will review the procedure before determining whether hundreds of contractors will be required to retake their exams. 

"I'm sure the licensing board will look at all of those renewals very closely," Dull said. 

County officials expect to spend today talking to Allison, licensing board members and federal agents. They want to get a handle on whether contractors who failed the test received their licenses anyway and may be working in unincorporated Lake County, Dull said. 

Under a county ordinance, to work in unincorporated areas, contractors have to answer questions on their trade and the state Uniform Building Code. 

The county licenses only contractors in unincorporated areas. Cities and towns have their own licensing requirements and often administer their own tests, Nuzzo said. 

In the second federal indictment released Thursday, Cvitkovich is charged with tax evasion. 

He was not indicted in connection with his duties as North Township trustee. Instead, the U.S. attorney indicted him on income tax charges relating to a consulting firm. Cvitkovich is a partner in a firm that runs East Chicago's recycling program, at the site of the former city incinerator, according to sources close to the case. 

According to documents on file with the Indiana Secretary of State's office, Cvitkovich was one of the principles in The C Corporation, along with James Fife III, former special assistant to outgoing Mayor Robert Pastrick. 

Fife was indicted in August on similar income tax charges, stemming from four unnamed companies to which he had ties. At the time, federal prosecutors said the companies had won contracts with East Chicago. 

Fife was also an unnamed co-conspirator in the 1999 concrete-for-votes scandal. Fife's name came up frequently in the recent trial of three Sidewalk Six defendants -- City Controller Edwardo Maldonado and city councilmen Joe De La Cruz and Frank Kollintzas -- as one of the people at city hall responsible for the coverup of how millions of taxpayer dollars were spent without bids. 

Court records show that federal agents looked at Cvitkovich's questionable deductions from two periods -- May 7, 1997, to April 30, 1998, when deductions totaled $203,467 and again from May 1, 1998, to April 30 1999, with deductions of $165,865. 

Sources close to he case say the two are part of a private group who have run the city's multi-million-dollar recycling program since at least 1997. 

Cvitkovich did not return a phone call left with his secretary at the North Township office. 

Carter did not return a message left with his secretary at the Recorder's Office. 

Allison would not comment on his indictment. 

Reporter Steve Walsh can be reached at 648-3120 or swalsh@post-trib.com. 

The charges 

Morris Carter 

Lake County recorder 

Charged with three counts of Hobbs Act violations for alleg-ed extortion. He allegedly accepted money to purge a lien, provide a public document and have the grade changed on a failed contract-or licensing exam. 

Jan Allison 

Lake County assistant building administrator 

Charged with one count of a Hobbs Act violation for alleged extortion. He allegedly changed the answers on the failed licensing exam and accepting money in return. 

Greg Cvitkovich 

North Township trustee 

Charged with two counts of tax fraud for filing false corp-orate federal income tax returns. He alleg-edly reported inflat-ed deductions for his private consult-ing firm. 

What's next 

Carter is set to ap-pear before a federal judge today, while co-defendant Allison is scheduled for arraignment on Dec. 16. Cvitkovich is set to appear Dec. 10. 

If convicted, Carter and Allison could face up to 20 years in prison for each charge against them, while Cvitkovich could face up to three years on each tax count. 

Caption: Morris Carter, Lake County recorder, leaves his Crown Point office without comment about his indictment on Thursday. A federal grand jury indicted Carter on charges of extortion.(PHOTO - Color) (DAVE BARTMAN/POST-TRIBUNE) Greg Cvitkovich(PHOTO - Color) 

12022004 - News Article - New corruption indictments expected today - ROBERT CANTRELL

New corruption indictments expected today
NWI Times
Dec 2, 2004
nwitimes.com/news/local/new-corruption-indictments-expected-today/article_96f57e20-ca6a-5eb5-9d2c-65dd6041c059.html
HAMMOND | The U.S. attorney's office is expected to announce new indictments today in the effort to root out public corruption in the region.

U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Indiana Joseph Van Bokkelen is holding a news conference this morning to "announce indictments of public interest," according to a news release from his office.

An investigation by Van Bokkelen's office, known as Operation Restore Public Integrity, has resulted in the convictions of 19 elected officials and public figures on corruption charges. Another eight are awaiting trial.

Former Lake County Assessor and Auditor Peter Benjamin, currently serving a 51-month federal sentence for bribing a county councilman, is cooperating with federal prosecutors in their investigation. Last month they were granted a delay for submitting their report on public integrity in federal court. Prosecutors claimed Benjamin has supplied them with enough valuable leads to continue the investigation.

11302004 - News Article - EDITORIALS: Keep public integrity a priority

EDITORIALS: Keep public integrity a priority
NWI Times
Nov 30, 2004
nwitimes.com/news/opinion/editorial/keep-public-integrity-a-priority/article_f00311fe-f7fd-5e62-adee-0aa05a24c82b.html
Our opinion: Whether Peter Benjamin, the former county assessor and county auditor, should have his sentence reduced is debatable.

The U.S. Attorney's offce has come out swinging again at public corruption in Lake County and other parts of Northwest Indiana.

It seems disgraced, imprisoned Lake County politician Peter Benjamin has been extremely cooperative with federal investigators, offering them valuable leads in their quest to rid the region of corrupt elected officials and others in the public arena.

What a relief to the honest people who live here and those in public life who do not consider it their right to abuse the public trust and misuse public money. They are embarrassed and enraged by the way some offcials abuse their positions and consider themselves entitled to live off the public trust and wallet.

Operation Restore Public Integrity has resulted in the start of a major housecleaning in the region, one that few who grew up in the political structure here thought would never happen.

Under U.S. Attorney Joseph Van Bokkelen and David Capp, his first assistant U.S. attorney, the offce has secured the convictions of 18 elected oggcials and public figures on corruption charges. Nine others are awaiting trial.

What a warning to those who could be targets or who could be tempted to use their public offce for private gain.

There had been speculation that in the aftermath of the federal jury trial of three East Chicago politicos, the Operation Restore Public Integrity investigation might have lost some of its steam. A federal jury convicted Councilmen Frank Kollintzas, D-4th, and Joe De La Cruz, D-at large, and City Controller Edwardo Maldonado of misappropriation of funds, but acquitted them of 10 counts of fraud and conspiracy. The jury also convicted Kollintzas of lying.

Thank goodness, that is not the case. The region's reputation for political shenanigans and underhanded methods has not helped attract new businesses to the area.

After he was convicted last year of bribery, Benjamin said he would cooperate with federal investigators on other corruption activities here, but federal prosecutors did not ퟌnd him all that helpful. As a result, they did nothing to get him a lighter sentence than the 51 months he began serving last year. After several months at the Fort Dix, N.J., Federal Correctional Institution, however, Benjamin became more helpful. For that, the feds now are saying Benjamin deserves a reduced sentence.

Whether Benjamin, the former county assessor and county auditor, should have his sentence reduced is debatable. First, it is important to see whether the information he is offering federal investigators is solid enough to lead to more indictments.

11142004 - News Article - Feds to plow ahead on public corruption - ROBERT CANTRELL

Feds to plow ahead on public corruption
NWI Times
Nov 14, 2004
nwitimes.com/news/local/feds-to-plow-ahead-on-public-corruption/article_e9192ef0-73c3-5839-8f91-d458e940a9d3.html
HAMMOND | The U.S. attorney's office is stepping back to look at the split verdict in East Chicago's sidewalk fraud case and its consequences for their future campaign against public corruption.

Sources within the government said prosecutors will examine their tactics and overall strategy, but were generally pleased with the results.

They won convictions Wednesday of East Chicago City Councilmen Frank Kollintzas, D-4th, and Joe De La Cruz, D-at large, and City Controller Edwardo Maldonado on one count of misappropriating public money to pave residents' driveways and businesses' parking lots with free concrete, and another count for Kollintzas' lying to the FBI.

They lost on 10 fraud and conspiracy counts, which comprised the bulk of their argument that the defendants combined to use the money to enrich their campaigns for re-election in 1999. The jury also acquitted De La Cruz of lying to the FBI.

Prosecutors privately said that didn't concern them, because they still expect to win lengthy prison terms on the convictions.

A source close to the defendants challenges that assessment, saying newspaper headlines should have underscored the many acquittals, not the few convictions.

That source contends the misappropriation count is the least serious among the charges the defendants faced, because they could win release on probation at sentencing if their convictions stand on appeal.

Lawyers for the defendants are expected to appeal the guilty verdicts as early as Monday on grounds they are inconsistent with the acquittals on the other counts.

The trial will resume Monday. Prosecutors likely will ask the jury to issue a special verdict that the defendants misappropriated such a large amount of money that they deserve prison time.

Prosecutors privately acknowledge they pushed the envelope with the sidewalk case, because they didn't have evidence the defendants pocketed any of the $24 million spent on the sidewalk project in the form of bribes or kickbacks.

The defense was able to argue the money spent in the spring of 1999 stayed in the city in the form of free services to residents. One attorney close to the case said those charged in the sidewalk case only were guilty of "over-exuberant" government.

Overturning all convictions could force prosecutors to be less aggressive in pending prosecutions and future indictments of other East Chicago and Northwest Indiana officials under Operation Restore Public Integrity.

The public corruption initiative has won the conviction of 19 public officials and politically connected business persons. Another nine public figures await trial.

Kevin Milner, a Dyer lawyer representing De La Cruz, made an impression on the jury when he argued the government's conspiracy charge in the sidewalk case was hollow because East Chicago Mayor Robert Pastrick and his highest advisers remained uncharged.

During their deliberations, jurors asked the judge whether the defendants could be convicted of conspiring with an official outside those charged in the case.

The government has named Pastrick as an unindicted co-conspirator in the case but hasn't charged him with any wrongdoing.

There also has been speculation that if the jury votes to give the defendants enhanced sentences that might involve prison time, the defendants and prosecutors might work out a deal in which the defendants would cooperate with the government in future prosecutions.

11102004 - News Article - EDITORIALS: Continue to roust public corruption - The issue: Joseph Van Bokkelen - Our opinion: The law-abiding citizens of Northwest Indiana have been served well by this U.S. attorney - ROBERT CANTRELL

EDITORIALS - Continue to roust public corruption
The issue: Joseph Van Bokkelen - Our opinion: The law-abiding citizens of Northwest Indiana have been served well by this U.S. attorney
NWI Times
Nov 10, 2004
nwitimes.com/news/opinion/editorial/continue-to-roust-public-corruption/article_ce95ec48-5573-558d-8e21-3546ce441168.html
A positive outcome for Northwest Indiana of President Bush's re-election is the likelihood that Joseph Van Bokkelen will continue as U.S. attorney for Northern Indiana.

Van Bokkelen and his staff have been relentless in investigating what he once called "behavior without integrity" among public officials and those who do business with government officials here.

"...and I think I am making some sort of difference," he said in what surely is the understatement of the day.

It has been under Van Bokkelen's leadership that many politicians at the municipal, township and county levels of government dread Fridays, which have become synonymous with the announcement of indictments against public officials.

When he was named U.S. attorney by President Bush, at the urging of U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar, R-Ind., and others, Van Bokkelen made it clear that targeting public corruption in Lake County was a priority.

He stuck to that pledge -- with the convictions of 16 elected officials, public figures and politically connected businessmen; 13 on trial or awaiting trial on various charges of public fraud or its cover-up. So far.

There always has been the perception that the region was rife with political corruption, and Van Bokkelen and his team have proved that to be the reality with its Operation Restore Public Integrity.

Not since the Operation Lights Out investigation that began in the 1980s and resulted in the convictions of more than 20 people, including some high-profile politicians, has the region seen so many influential people fall like dominoes because of the aggressive federal investigations by the U.S. attorney's office.

Had Sen. John Kerry won the presidential election, Van Bokkelen -- as a Republican president's appointee -- likely would have been replaced by a Democratic appointee.

The law-abiding citizens of Northwest Indiana have been served well by this U.S. attorney, not just for the corruption investigations, but also for his vigorous prosecution of gun violations, one of the most aggressive in the nation.

Lugar's office is optimistic that Van Bokkelen will remain Northern Indiana's top law enforcement officer.

That is bad news for those in government circles who confuse elective office with an unlimited bank account. And that is good news for the rest of us.

11072004 - News Article - Van Bokkelen promises 'perfect storm' of more convictions - GOVERNMENT: Top U.S. attorney expected to stay on in Northwest Indiana - ROBERT CANTRELL

Van Bokkelen promises 'perfect storm' of more convictions
GOVERNMENT: Top U.S. attorney expected to stay on in Northwest Indiana
NWI Times
Nov 7, 2004
nwitimes.com/news/local/van-bokkelen-promises-perfect-storm-of-more-convictions/article_1d4d2657-2a8e-5f78-98d8-218608a4f3bc.html
HAMMOND | Not everyone may derive satisfaction from Joseph Van Bokkelen's stewardship as U.S. attorney, but he is.

"As long as I enjoy what I'm doing and I think I'm making a difference, I'm going to continue to do it. And I am enjoying it and I think I am making some sort of difference," he said last week.

Andy Fisher, a spokesman for U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar, also said the 61-year-old Van Bokkelen is likely to remain Northern Indiana's top law enforcement officer. "The expectation is that all our appointees will continue on into President George Bush's second term.

His office has won the conviction and detention of hundreds of criminals and the distinction of being one of the most aggressive in the country in the prosecution of gun violations.

However, the highest job expectations he faced when he began three years ago were in the area of public corruption.

In that time, he has presided over the conviction of 16 elected officials, public figures and politically connected businessmen. Another 13 are either on trial or awaiting trial on a variety of charges of public fraud or its cover-up.

Van Bokkelen recently promised a "perfect storm" of still more indictments, which have turned Fridays -- the day grand juries usually issue corruption charges -- a painful experience for local officials.

Had Democratic presidential candidate U.S. Sen. John Kerry won election, Van Bokkelen would have had to resign by year's end and have been replaced by a Democratic appointment. President Bush's re-election Tuesday is likely to dispel any illusions that Van Bokkelen's Operation Restore Public Integrity would be retired.

Former U.S. Attorney Jim Richmond, who served on the search committee that recommended Van Bokkelen, said a change is possible. He said former President Bill Clinton made wholesale changes in U.S. attorney offices across America after his re-election eight years ago. "Then they realized they didn't have anybody who knew what was going on."

Van Bokkelen served as an assistant U.S. attorney in the early 1970s. He was in private practice for 26 years before his appointment.

Northwest Indiana's public figures have been reluctant to comment on the job Van Bokkelen does, fearful of drawing his ire. Richmond, who represents several criminal defendants being prosecuted by Van Bokkelen's office, also declined comment on Van Bokkelen's job performance, but did say, "I think we picked the best candidate."

Fisher said Lugar thinks "Our set of appointees have been serving well in their positions and the expectation is that with the election concluded, they will carry on."

09272004 - News Article - POLITICS NOTEBOOK - Fromm still in game - ROBERT CANTRELL

POLITICS NOTEBOOK
Fromm still in game
Post-Tribune (IN)
September 27, 2004
Nancy Fromm, the owner of Addiction and Family Care Inc., has been awarded a contract by the Lake County Department of Community Corrections to provide drug and alcohol addiction aftercare counseling for inmates in the Kimbrough Work Program.

The Lake County Commissioners approved the one-year deal at a recent meeting, following the advice of the Community Corrections Advisory Board.

Community Corrections Director Robert Hinojosa estimates the contract's worth at about $21,000, but a breakdown of the services slated under the deal shows Fromm's company could net thousands more depending on what programs she provides.

Fromm is a central figure in the U.S. attorney's case against former Schererville town Judge Deborah Riga, who is charged with extorting money from Fromm's company, which was doing business with the court.

09192004 - News Article - Political machine - EAST CHICAGO: City's patronage system crumbling amid rising taxes, bloated payroll - ROBERT CANTRELL

Political machine
EAST CHICAGO: City's patronage system crumbling amid rising taxes, bloated payroll
NWI Times
Times Statehouse Bureau Chief
Sep 19, 2004
nwitimes.com/news/local/political-machine/article_c675e247-d333-5888-8d0c-cf7f219f506c.html
EAST CHICAGO -- Even for a mayor skilled at weathering attacks for three decades, the forecast looks grim.

What some consider the last city political machine in America -- Robert Pastrick's stranglehold on East Chicago -- finally may grind itself to a halt.

U.S. Attorney Joseph Van Bokkelen has made a Friday ritual of doling out indictments that have Lake County politicos wondering who's wearing a wire.

Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter has charged city officials under laws normally reserved for the mafia, alleging Pastrick runs the city like the godfather of a corrupt enterprise.

Former Councilman George Pabey has used the city's rising Hispanic population to demand leadership change, and the Indiana Supreme Court granted him an unprecedented special election Oct. 26.

All that's everyday politics for the "King of Steeltown."

No problem.

This is a place where job titles include alley inspectors and bridge attendants, where serving time for public corruption does not disqualify one for heading a department, and where it's normal to have entire families on the payroll. There are 135 employees listed as labor or laborer and 51 as secretary.

What's different now is the shift in property taxes to homeowners from industry has made the past habit of employment-as-welfare unsustainable.

Back in the day, when the steel mills and BP refinery paid the tab, no one cared how much the city spent or who it hired to build a patronage army.

"This time it's different," said Dan Lowery, a University of Indiana Northwest professor involved in improving local government. "It pits him against his own citizens. You can't maintain that cost structure and dump the bill on the taxpayers. You can't have Cadillac services and not pay for them."

Lowery said Pastrick can't make the changes now, because he's facing another election, even though taxpayers are paying attention for the first time.

Whoever wins the election may inherit bankruptcy and certainly will face the same dilemma.

Imagine dumping hundreds of jobs, then asking for votes -- that's not the East Chicago way.

Instead, Pastrick approved a few new hires and a 4 percent pay bump across-the-board Tuesday before announcing his own bid for re-election the next day. Only Thursday did the city recognize that property-tax collection came in so far below expectations, it owes Lake County $3 million it already has spent.

Leaders defend system
Pastrick and his assistant, Tim Raykovich, acknowledged the city spends far more money than it should. The shift in the tax burden has made past employment practices unsustainable, they said.

Pastrick spoke passionately about improvement projects in the city that have been delayed in recognition of the tax crisis.

He said homeowners understand property-tax levels will never return to the artificially low levels of the past, where thousands paid little or nothing at all.

"We certainly need to make changes in East Chicago, and we will," Pastrick said. "I admit possibly we have had an excessive amount of people on the payroll, and we will do everything we can to rectify it.

"That being said, we have to understand the makeup of East Chicago as opposed to communities like Schererville. We have poverty and indigents and a lot of senior citizens, and they require a lot of services. And I'd like to sustain the kinds of service the people in the bedroom communities can afford."

Some departments, such as parks and sanitation, are in desperate need of cutting, Raykovich said. Garbage is collected twice a week with three workers per truck, while neighboring Hammond collects once a week at one-third of East Chicago's payroll cost.

The parks department maintains 16 parks, including a greenhouse. Measured out in total land space, each acre of park would nearly have its own worker and $30,171 to beautify it.

Pastrick defended the garbage pickups as necessary to stop rodents and disease.

He said many residents don't have cars and need free transportation to get to the doctor or stores that only exist outside the city. The parks transform the city's negative image, he said.

"We have to do everything we can to sustain the quality of life for people who can least afford it," Pastrick said. "I have to try in every possible way I can to maintain the viability of this city by keeping the people here."

Asked if that spending could drive out the same citizens with property taxes, Pastrick blamed the problem on the state for not phasing in a change to market-value assessments and said he has supported consolidation as a solution.

After 33 years of winning support with services, change is complex, Raykovich said. Though the city pays him to make those changes, the political reality and lack of other employment options make it difficult, he said.

"These people rely on the city for their livelihood," Raykovich said.

Plans to cut about 150 workers were shelved until after the special election.

In July, Raykovich said the city would reduce the number of take-home vehicles to 15 from 121. Instead, the city targeted 40 vehicles and returned only 20.

Political machine combusting
Attorney General Steve Carter, a Republican, said East Chicago's history of corruption warranted the first state use of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO, Act.

The suit, filed Aug. 3, charges Pastrick and 26 other defendants with misspending public money by pouring concrete and trimming trees on private property in return for votes in the 1999 Democratic primary.

Carter identified $3.1 million in questionable spending but suggests the total could be more like $20 million.

Carter said the State Board of Accounts turned over East Chicago audits to his office for investigation. The financial mismanagement cited ranges from inappropriate use of casino tax money to a lack of internal controls over spending and payroll.

"When one individual has been in charge for 30 years, it's appropriate to go after the chief executive," Carter said. "Our intent is to address a systematic problem."

Pastrick dismissed Carter's suit as a political ploy timed to help Carter in an election year, and said he has served honestly.

Pastrick's paternalism rubs his critics the wrong way, as if he's bestowing gifts to the grateful rabble rather than serving the public with their own money.

He said he does not micromanage and does not run a political machine anymore.

"At one time, we truly had a political machine," Pastrick said.

"I myself helped to set that image in place because of the political influence. I've always felt a city as small as this one with the problems we had, had to have some clout. I performed in that capacity."

He often compares himself to Richard J. Daley, the father of the current Chicago mayor who ran the most famous recent city machine. Like Daley, nonstop investigations have never tied Pastrick personally to any illegal activity or bribery.

Leonor Silva, a Hammond resident who said she worked in the city controller's office in the 1990s, believes Pastrick always has been the ringleader. Silva said she quit in 1998 and filed an unsuccessful harassment suit.

Before the 1995 primary, she said she overheard Pastrick talking to department heads and insiders in the hall outside her office.

"He said, 'I don't care how you get the votes, just get them,' " Silva said.

This October, even Pastrick supporters expect the special election to be crawling with agents and investigators to ensure historic patterns of buying and stealing votes don't occur. Still, some residents don't expect a change.

City history forged "godfather"
Maurice Eisenstein, a Pastrick critic and political science professor at Purdue University Calumet, called East Chicago politics a cultural phenomenon drummed into residents throughout the years.

"You have a godfather figure that uses public money to help people the way the mafia would," he said. "The whole city works as a criminal enterprise, complete with a ring to kiss."

He said there's no other way to explain the loyalty people show Pastrick, because the city has suffered horribly outside of a few election-year bones.

The machine spent millions on capital projects that included political kickbacks, but little was left over for essential quality services that would attract economic development, he said.

For instance, the school system erected expensive buildings and then hired unqualified cronies to run it into the ground, he said. Test scores consistently at the bottom of the state show nothing happens inside the fine shells, he said.

"The streets aren't fixed, the marina is deteriorating, there are no new businesses, crime is up," Eisenstein said. "That's what's amazing -- all these people are being paid, and nobody seems to be working."

Colleen Aguirre, a Pastrick critic who recently moved out of East Chicago, said the East Europeans who came to work in the region's steel mills had no experience questioning authority. The Hispanics that now make up more than half the population also were afraid to rock the boat until recently, she said.

"East Chicago is like no other city -- it's truly not America," Aguirre said. "When people came to the region, their lives were run by their priest, their labor union rep and their precinct committeeman. They've been controlled for so long, they've grown up believing in this man."

Pastrick has perfected the political art of neutralizing opponents. Critics said he had Stephen Stiglich appointed Lake County sheriff after Stiglich nearly won the 1985 election, then gave him the Lake County Democratic Party chairman job after his near victory in the 1999 primary.

Pastrick also iced scant Republican opposition for years by placing their chairman, Robert Cantrell, in a job as one of several school athletic directors. After finally switching parties officially to become a Democrat, Cantrell now works as "inter-agency liaison" for North Township and has been accused of using the position to recruit votes from poor-relief clients.

System change faces challenges
A top city official acknowledged that abuses still run rampant in East Chicago.

He said high-salary jobs were awarded for purely political reasons, nepotism infects every department and program, and some workers don't show up for work while others have no supervisor.

The city has never passed civil service laws establishing competence levels or qualifications for positions. Officials could only provide draft copies of job duties, because they only now are being developed. A purchased punch-clock system also languishes.

Even for lesser jobs, patronage drives decisions, the official said. For instance, the city maintained control of the Dickey Street Bridge rather than ceding it to the county or building a higher one. Five vote-indebted operators, each making about $20,000 per year, take shifts raising the bridge for occasional ships on the Indiana Harbor Canal, he said.

Cutting the bridge, several unnecessary salaries and outsourcing garbage pickup instantly would save $1 million, by his estimates. It hasn't happened.

Dewey Pearman, who directed East Chicago's Chamber of Commerce in the late 1980s, said there was little incentive for reform, because industry until recently paid about 90 percent of the city's tax burden.

"The individual taxpayer did not voice much opinion, because he didn't have much skin in the game," Pearman said. "Now, cities must perform basic services, not employment services."

Pearman and others said they did not think challengers Lonnie Randolph, a former city judge, or Pabey, had indicated much interest in change, other than replacing the system's beneficiaries. Everyone wants to "sit near the dragon table and get some of the droppings," Aguirre said.

That could spell bad news for the region. A Connecticut Center for Economic Analysis study in March found government corruption depresses job growth even more than rising taxes.

Like Pastrick, Pabey said the payroll must be "cut from the top." If he wins, he vowed he would take a substantial cut in salary "down to the level of the governor or lower."

Regardless of the election outcome, many predict the city will find itself bankrupt and struggling to trim the patronage army.

"Pabey just wants his turn at the trough," Raykovich said.

By then, there may be nothing left but to sink in the barnyard muck.

09082004 - News Article - Courts ordered to continue sentencing - Judge denies request to halt decisions until high court case is heard

Courts ordered to continue sentencing 
Judge denies request to halt decisions until high court case is heard

Post-Tribune (IN)
September 8, 2004

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Despite the current debate over federal sentencing guidelines, upcoming sentences should go on as scheduled, according to an order by Chief Judge Robert Miller. 

Last month, U.S. Attorney Joseph Van Bokkelen filed a motion requesting that the Northern District of Indiana halt all sentences until the U.S. Supreme Court has made a decision on how the Blakely v. Washington case applies to federal sentencing guidelines. 

In the Blakely case, Supreme Court judges ruled the sentencing guidelines in place in the state of Washington, which mirror those at the federal level, are unconstitutional. 

The U.S. Supreme Court will examine the issue when it reconvenes in October. 

In his order, Miller wrote only that he had reviewed the written submissions by the community defender's office, the U.S. attorney and other parties and consulted with the other district judges. He offered no further explanation as to why he denied Van Bokkelen's request. 

Miller declined an interview for this story due to his court schedule. 

While defense attorneys have long questioned the constitutionality of the federal sentencing guidelines, most seemed to oppose the blanket moratorium on sentencing. 

Jerome Flynn, federal community defender in Hammond, filed an objection to Van Bokkelen's motion. 

In his objection, Flynn wrote the government was seeking a "one-size-fits-all remedy for every case currently pending sentencing in this district." 

He felt the courts should decide on a case-by-case basis whether a sentencing should be delayed because not all cases would be affected one way or the other by Blakely. 

Van Bokkelen agreed not all cases would be affected, but he felt a blanket moratorium would prevent the inevitable invalidation of sentences if the Supreme Court decides to restructure or abolish the guidelines. 

Van Bokkelen's office declined to comment. 

In his order, Miller wrote that his decision would not prejudice requests to halt sentences in individual cases. 

Flynn said he was "happy the court decided to proceed forward." And he thought Miller's decision was a good indication that the majority of district judges believe the cases should be handled individually. 

Although the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago ruled in July that Blakely did apply to federal cases, that court is still issuing sentences. 

Flynn said the district courts should follow the circuit court's lead. 

Although Miller's ruling prevents a blanket stay throughout the district, it does not prevent judges from halting all sentences in their own courtrooms. 

Federal Judge Theresa Springmann in Fort Wayne issued a blanket stay of all sentences in her court last month. 

But Flynn said he and his colleagues have been able to successfully show Blakely would not apply to some cases, and Springmann has gone ahead with those sentencings. 

Some high-profile Northwest Indiana residents are scheduled for sentencing this fall, including Kevin Pastrick for his role in the carpenters union real estate investment scheme. 

Flynn is hopeful the Supreme Court will "stay true to their logic" that applied in Blakely and abolish the guidelines. 

While many expect the Supreme Court to at least restructure the guidelines, it might be a lengthy discussion. The court was virtually split on the Blakely decision, which ended in a 5-4 vote. 

09062004 - News Article - Cantrell politicking blatant - Former GOP leader defends North Township office work, admits election involvement - ROBERT CANTRELL

Cantrell politicking blatant
Former GOP leader defends North Township office work, admits election involvement
NWI Times
Sep 6, 2004
nwitimes.com/news/local/cantrell-politicking-blatant/article_4ff05698-fed4-51ab-a63d-9d56d6381f3d.html
EAST CHICAGO -- Employee transfers among North Township trustee offices several months ago appeared to have carved out a new political power base for Robert Cantrell, a former local Republican Party leader. That is until business associate Nancy Fromm turned government witness last month in a federal case against former Schererville Judge Deborah Riga.

Also possibly chilling Cantrell's influence is the Indiana Supreme Court's Aug. 6 ruling to hold a new 2003 Democratic mayoral primary election in East Chicago because of "textbook chicanery," which involved absentee ballots Cantrell helped poor-relief clients fill out.

Cantrell, who has confirmed he has been paid a "finder's fee" for clients he referred to Fromm's counseling center, was named manager of the North Township trustee's Harbor office in East Chicago months ago.

Sources said the move, which bumped Harry Dean Johnson to the Hammond office of North Township Trustee Greg Cvitkovich, was orchestrated to give Cantrell "free rein" to influence poor-relief clients in East Chicago, and perhaps other elections. Johnson has been perceived as a potential whistle-blower involving election-related activities that go on during township trustee office hours, sources said.

For instance, Johnson testified last September before Special Judge Steven King in the voter fraud trial brought by Mayor Robert Pastrick challenger George Pabey. Johnson told the court he knew little about Cantrell's job performance, even though the two worked in the same office. He also testified overhearing Cantrell claim responsibility for Pastrick's primary victory -- by way of absentee ballots.

The trial also solicited the testimony of Martha Glover, who claimed Cantrell helped her fill out an absentee ballot in the township office, so she could be paid $100 to work at the polls in 2003. Such testimony led to King's ruling that the election was fraught with unacceptable shenanigans, even though he did not overthrow the election.

King's ruling, however, led to the Indiana Supreme Court's decision to hold another 2003 mayoral primary election. It will be held Oct. 26 with the original candidates on the ballot -- Pastrick, Pabey and former East Chicago Judge Lonnie Randolph.

Involvement goes deep
As part of his job, Cantrell has hired poor-relief clients to work at the polls as Republicans, he admitted in testimony before King.

A trial transcript quotes Cantrell as saying, "Poor people like to bounce around a precinct on Election Day" to make money, and that most of the people engaged in that process got paid $100 by the county.

"I paid them out of my pocket, too," Cantrell testified.

Weeks ago, Cantrell confirmed in an interview he has worked with registered voters at the office -- roughly 1,000 per year -- and helped them fill out absentee ballots, and that he sees nothing wrong with that.

The office also has relied on two township workers, Maria Watkins and Roxanne Bartoszek, to notarize 2003 candidacy papers for poor-relief recipients, including Woodrow "Pete" Rancifer and Dorothy Johnson. Cantrell said he helped them fill out both their forms.

Maria Valdez, a lead attorney with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, provided legal assistance to Pabey's challenge of the 2003 election. She said Friday that she is aware of Cantrell's testimony about his election involvement and has put Lake County on notice of its responsibility to run a clean election.

"If some of these things are happening (again) under their watch, we will hold them responsible," Valdez said.

"They have to be vigilant, given the 1999 issues, the 2003 issues -- the lack of training in the past May election. We argued that they let this happen, so they must make sure they are recruiting the right people, that forms are processed the right way, and are done according to the letter of the law. If they let people like Cantrell do what they have done in the past, they will be held responsible."

Cantrell, who has not been accused by federal or state prosecutors of any wrongdoing involving the election, could not be reached over the course of two days for comment.

In an earlier interview, he called himself an emissary for Cvitkovich -- so much so that clients who have never met the trustee have mistaken Cantrell for the officeholder.

But the job isn't just about politics, Cantrell said.

"It's about helping the poor in every possible way," he said.

"I do a lot of PR here. I was born and raised in the Harbor ... I know how to get things done."

Sketchy details
Cantrell, who held an "office liaison" title before, was hired under one of 15 "field inspector" slots years ago, Cvitkovich said, as that was the only position vacant in the salary ordinance at the time.

Cvitkovich refused to allow The Times to review original documents of the salary ordinance -- or the pay individuals received, saying those were his records and the salary information was private.

Cvitkovich did release typed pieces papers that he said were copied from original documents detailing job descriptions and annual pay. The papers say Cantrell earned $36,889 in 2003, $29,618 in 2002 and $30,000 in 2001.

Trial testimony also indicated township employees raised questions about the hours Cantrell actually worked.

But Cantrell said that does not mean he's a ghost-payroller.

"I'm here every day," he said. "Anything I would do, I won't put in writing."

He said he patches up inter-office disputes and spruced up the Harbor office. He said he helped write a $2,500 Harris Foundation grant that led to a backpack giveaway program for kids.

"I don't put my name on it, I put his (Cvitkovich's) name on it," Cantrell said. "I'm a worker bee here."

A Times request for documents to demonstrate Cantrell's work product yielded few papers, however.

Cantrell said he doesn't produce paper. He assembles it, boxes it and destroys it, as part of an authorized Indiana Commission on Public Records destruction program. At least 87 boxes have been marked for destruction so far, from 2002 and back, Cantrell said.

09052004 - News Article - Fed probe puts counseling service in jeapordy - Nancy Fromm's Addiction and Family Care business may suffer as cases unfold - ROBERT CANTRELL

Fed probe puts counseling service in jeapordy
Nancy Fromm's Addiction and Family Care business may suffer as cases unfold
NWI Times
Sep 5, 2004
nwitimes.com/news/local/fed-probe-puts-counseling-service-in-jeapordy/article_ecd9e536-4f6b-50c3-8b4d-f3df2f654ec9.html
HAMMOND -- Her counseling service has helped so many, but there now is a question about whether Addiction and Family Care can help itself stay in business.

Nancy Fromm has used a lifetime of political acumen and social-guidance skills to win hundreds of thousands of dollars in contracts from a variety of local government agencies to serve criminal defendants with substance-abuse problems.

She also has secured contracts to provide sensitivity training to government employees. Some have praised her counseling; others have complained it was all a pointless exercise in mood music and massages.

It could all be in jeopardy, as the U.S. attorney's office revealed last month Fromm allegedly made illegal payments to the family of former Schererville town judge Deborah Riga to keep that court's business. She now is cooperating with federal investigators.

Sources within local government said that revelation may cost her lucrative contracts, because she is viewed either as having committed ethical violations or because she betrayed Riga to save herself, and may betray others.

U.S. Attorney Joseph Van Bokkelen said last month after announcing Fromm's involvement in the case, "In this indictment, she's a victim."

Fromm declined comment on the future of her business and remains active as a Hammond precinct committeewoman working on behalf of a number of Democratic candidates running in the general election this November.

Highland lawyer J. Michael Katz, who represents Fromm, said he is sickened by rumors she now is considered political poison.

"She hasn't done anything wrong. She received a federal subpoena and responded truthfully and was forthcoming." Katz said.

"The fact that she may have to pay a price businesswise for doing what is the responsibility of every citizen, highlights a problem with the system. She has a legitimate business with a competent staff."

Fromm, a city Democratic precinct committeewoman has funneled $13,000 in donations the last six years to a variety of public officials and also helped their election campaigns in other ways. Those officials, in turn, have referred business to Addiction and Family Care, including hundreds of minor drug and alcohol offenders who go through local courts each year.

Fromm also has used Robert Cantrell as a paid consultant to bring in business for her. He is a former East Chicago Republican city chairman who was dumped by the GOP for his tendency to ally himself with Democratic politicians.

Both provided help to the unsuccessful re-election campaign of Riga, who pleaded not guilty to charges that she set up a driving school for traffic violators and a counseling service for teen offenders and then embezzled more than $30,000 in fees paid to attended the programs.

State law and judicial canons forbid judges to profit from their courts beyond their fixed salaries.

The charges include allegations she extorted money from Fromm, whose business was providing counseling for criminal defendants. The indictment alleges she was forced to pay Riga's father $2,000 under the guise of his being a consultant. Riga's father has not been charged with any wrongdoing.

Merrillville lawyer Nick Thiros, who represents Riga, hinted in a recent court hearing he intends to attack Fromm's credibility.

One government source said last week he considered using an escape clause in his contract with Fromm after learning of the illegal payments. He said he was calmed by media reports that Fromm was not under investigation herself, but that he may switch future business to another less controversial counseling service.

Another source close to Addiction and Family Care said the negative publicity has stalled negotiations on a lucrative government contract to provide counseling to Hammond city employees.

Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. couldn't be reached this week for comment. Hammond City Council Member Dan Repay said Friday no requests on such a contract had been made to the council.

09012004 - News Article - Scion of politician sues over firing - John Cantrell alleges he is victim of political retribution, racial bias - ROBERT CANTRELL

Scion of politician sues over firing
John Cantrell alleges he is victim of political retribution, racial bias
NWI Times
Sep 1, 2004
nwitimes.com/news/local/scion-of-politician-sues-over-firing/article_1388c2cb-f4aa-5688-83a7-81babb9d4b30.html
EAST CHICAGO -- A son of East Chicago politician Robert Cantrell is suing the City Court over allegations he is a victim of political and racial retribution.

John Cantrell alleges City Judge Sonya A. Morris fired him Jan. 31 from his job as a public defender in the court because he supported her unsuccessful opponent in last year's Democratic municipal primary election, attorney Corinth Bishop II.

Neither Morris nor John Cantrell could be reached Tuesday for comment on the suit now pending in U.S. District Court in Hammond.

David S. Gladish, a Highland lawyer representing Cantrell, said Tuesday, "You can't fire someone for politics who is not in a policy-making position. She should know better, and we are calling her on it."

Former City Judge Edwardo Fontanez hired John Cantrell last year to represent low-income defendants who cannot afford to hire private defense lawyers.

Fontanez, who now works in the same law office as John Cantrell, didn't run for election last year.

John Cantrell alleges he openly supported Corinth Bishop for city judge in the 2003 primary against Morris, who won with 5,681 votes to Bishop's 3,042.

Gladish said Morris took office Jan. 1 this year and sent John Cantrell home on the first working day of the year in court with instructions to return the following week. He said she did the same thing twice more before firing him, without ever having performed an evaluation of his job performance.

Gladish said John Cantrell is a successful private attorney who conducted himself "within the highest standard of professionalism and integrity," so the firing has damaged Cantrell's reputation.

Gladish said the firing is reminiscent of former East Chicago City Judge Lonnie Randolph firing former City Court public defender Tula Kavadias in 2001. A federal court jury last month awarded Kavadias $4.5 million in damages for that job action.

John Cantrell's father, Robert, is a former East Chicago Republican chairman who the GOP removed in 2003 because the party said he is a political adviser to many leading Democratic figures here and throughout the county.

John Cantrell alleges his firing also was the product of racial discrimination because he is white and Morris is black.

08252004 - News Article - Former Schererville judge indicted - ROBERT CANTRELL

Former Schererville judge indicted
Indiana Lawyer (Indianapolis, IN)
August 25, 2004
A former Schererville Town Court judge is facing federal extortion and mail fraud charges accused of illegally profiting from defensive driving courses and counseling services offered through the court.

An eight-count indictment was returned Aug. 5 against Deborah A. Riga, 47, Sarasota, Fla., by a federal grand jury sitting in Hammond.

Riga entered a plea of not guilty during her arraignment Aug. 9 before Magistrate Judge Andrew P. Rodovich. She is free on a $20,000 unsecured bond.

Her attorney, Nick J. Thiros of Merrillville, did not return calls seeking comment on the case.

Riga served as judge of Schererville Town Court from January 2000 to Dec. 31, 2003. Her victory over challenger Kenneth Anderson in the 2003 Democratic primary was overturned in September by a judge who threw out 23 fraudulent absentee votes. She has since moved to Florida.

The 20-page indictment claims Riga pocketed between $30,000 and $70,000 in a scheme that funneled funds from offenders who came before her to businesses she owned. Federal prosecutors are seeking forfeiture of any ill-gotten gains.

In October 2001, Riga established a business entity called Diversified Educational Services to replace Gibraltar Driving School in operating a defensive driving course offered through a Schererville Town Court deferral program, the indictment alleges.

People charged with minor traffic offenses in Schererville could take part in the deferral program, which required them to participate in the defensive driving school. Completion of the deferral program would allow the offenders to avoid conviction and the offense would not appear on their driving record.

Participants had to pay a $25 fee to the driving school in addition to a deferral fee of about $114.

To conceal her ownership of DES, Riga directed fees from participants at the driving school into a bank account in the name of an acquaintance, prosecutors claim.

According to the indictment, Riga increased the fee for the driving school to $30 in January 2002 and began letting DES use her courtroom for free rather than having the town charge rent at a rate of $250 per session as it had in the past.

"Between November 2001 and December 2003, approximately 1,000 individuals attended DES driving school and paid fees totaling approximately $29,600," the indictment states.

The judge hatched a similar scheme with a young offender program offered through the court, the charges allege.

Young adults, generally ages 18 to 22 who were charged in Schererville Town Court for the first time with consumption or possession of alcohol or marijuana, were ordered by Riga to participate in counseling. Upon completion of counseling and after a period of supervision, the charges would be dismissed through the program the judge called Crossroads.

A business known as Addiction and Family Care Inc. provided the counseling for the Crossroads program, until Riga assumed control. Riga instructed the owner of AFC to pay her father, Tony Riga, $500 per counseling session as a consultant, although her father provided no services to AFC or to Crossroads, according to the indictment.

Prosecutors say AFC's owner understood this demand to mean that payments had to be made to Tony Riga in order for the company to continue to receive business from the Schererville Town Court.

In January 2002, Riga assumed control of the Crossroads program, but continued to use an AFC employee as counselor of the program who would issue certificates to participants who completed the counseling, which bore the signature of AFC's owner, according to the indictment.

Payments to the Crossroads program were to be given to Riga or placed in the court safe, and she then would deposit those payments into the DES account, the charges claim.

About $14,320 in fees from 175 offenders was placed into the account between January 2002 and December 2003, prosecutors allege.

As with the defensive driving school, rent payments to the city ceased once Riga took over the Crossroads program, according to the indictment.

"Deborah A. Riga abused her position of public trust in a manner that significantly facilitated the commission and concealment of the offenses," the indictment states.

Under IC 35-44-1-3, a public servant cannot knowingly or intentionally have a pecuniary interest in or derive profit from a contract connected with an action by the governmental entity served by the public servant.

Canon 2 of the Code of Judicial Conduct requires judges to avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety, while Canon 4D(1)(a) and (c) provide that a judge shall not engage in business dealings that might be perceived as exploiting the judge's position.

A joint task force consisting of the Indiana Attorney General's Office, the Lake County Prosecutor's Office, the FBI, the Indiana State Police, and the United States Attorney's Office investigated the case.

A status conference in the case is set for Nov. 14 before Judge Rodovich, at which time a trial date will be set.

08152004 - News Article - The systematic emasculation of the Lake County Democrats - ROBERT CANTRELL

The systematic emasculation of the Lake County Democrats
NWI Times
Aug 15, 2004
nwitimes.com/news/opinion/the-systematic-emasculation-of-the-lake-county-democrats/article_a23ccae1-1064-55c8-b9e0-4dd83c9b701a.html
INDIANAPOLIS -- Most folks in downstate Indiana don't realize the impact that events in the Northwest Indiana region can have on the rest of us. In the early 1980s, the near collapse of the steel industry in the region created such a budget crisis that Gov. Robert Orr had to call the legislature back into session in December 1982 to raise taxes.

Politically, Lake County has been the Democratic bulwark, giving Govs. Evan Bayh and Frank O'Bannon pluralities in the 75,000 to 100,000 vote range, offsetting Republican pluralities from Marion and the surrounding doughnut counties.

But things are changing in profoundly dramatic ways. Two weeks ago, Attorney General Steve Carter filed a civil lawsuit against East Chicago Mayor Robert Pastrick and 26 others, alleging the city's government is a criminal enterprise. Three days later, in a thunderous decision, the Indiana Supreme Court ordered a new election in East Chicago. It followed a narrow 2003 primary victory by Pastrick over George Pabey, who alleged rampant voter fraud.

Most noteworthy was the vote of Associate Justice Robert D. Rucker, an East Chicago native Pastrick helped get on the high court. Rucker voted with the majority.

"When as here an election is characterized by a widespread and pervasive pattern of deliberate conduct calculated to cast unlawful and deceptive ballots, the election results are inherently deceptive and unreliable," the court said in its ruling.

It was a stunning development on a day that also brought federal indictments of Pastrick confidante James H. Fife III and his wife, Karen Krahn-Fife, and former Schererville judge Deborah Riga.

What is occurring is the systematic emasculation of the Lake County Democratic machine on a five-pronged front, it's impact every bit as dramatic as Evan Bayh's political assault on the Indiana GOP machine in 1986-88.

There are these Republicans: U.S. Attorney Joseph Van Bokkelen and, higher up in the U.S. Justice Department, Assistant Attorney General Deborah Daniels, who heads the Office of Justice Programs and is the sister of gubernatorial candidate Mitch Daniels. There is Attorney General Carter, a lowell native, who invoked RICO statutes against Pastrick. There is Secretary of State Todd Rokita, a Munster native, who orchestrated a voter file purge that resulted in 70,000 of 340,000 Lake County voter registration validation forms coming back as "undeliverable mail."

Candidate Daniels has been taking aim on the political and economic front. His message has been that Lake County will always have problems attracting good jobs until its corrupt government is rectified.

The list of associates of the Pastrick machine under indictment or investigation -- Fife, former Indiana Democratic Chairman Peter Manous, the mayor's son Kevin Pastrick -- represents a sea change in Lake County and Hoosier politics.

Last September, Pastrick attended Van Bokkelen's "Zero Tolerance of Public Corruption" seminar in Hammond, while at the same time, U.S. marshals fanned out to round up six East Chicago administration and council members involved in the $20 million 1999 sidewalk scandal prior to the primary.

Purdue University Calumet Professor Maurice Eisenstein told the Times of Northwest Indiana he believes the Lake County Democratic machine will slip by at least 15,000 votes this November. Eisenstein said voters might be dissatisfied over Lake County's recent political shenanigans as well as the length of time it took Kernan to propose a solution -- a 2 percent cap of a home's assessed value -- to stem some of the huge property tax hikes in northern Lake County.

"The state's also cleaning up voter rolls," he said. "It'll be much more difficult to pull the hanky-panky stuff."

Democratic stalwarts tend to see Van Bokkelen's efforts as credible, and those by Attorney General Carter, facing a challenge from Democrat Joe Hogsett, as grandstanding.

The irony is that it is the squeaky clean Kernan -- who originally dropped out of the governor's race in part, because of the power play that put the corrupt Manous in as state Democratic Party chairman -- who stands to pay the biggest political price from all the fallout.

Indiana Democrats were slow to cut their ties with the embattled Pastrick. On the night of Kernan's State of the State address, the party under Chairman Hogsett had the "Pastrick Reception" at the Skyline Club.

It's a tough call when to get out the 10-foot pole, particularly with someone like Pastrick.

While few realize the context, the assault on region corruption, the "Indianapolis Works" consolidation proposals by Mayor Bart Peterson, and Brent Waltz's defeat of 36-year Senate Finance Chairman Larry Borst, all signal dramatic changes in Hoosier politics -- all fascinating precursors to Nov. 2.

08142004 - News Article - Overview on NWI corruption

Overview on NWI corruption

Post-Tribune (IN)
August 14, 2004 

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.proxy.portagelibrary.info/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_product=AWNB&p_theme=aggregated5&p_action=doc&p_docid=104ACF8FAB7AC819&p_docnum=173&p_queryname=1

East Chicago officials named by Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter in a civil racketeering lawsuit, where he says the city is "a corrupt enterprise:" 

Mayor Robert Pastrick 

James Fife, special assistant 

Timothy Raykovich, special assistant 

Kimberly K. Anderson, deputy controller 

George Weems, finance director and Board of Works president 

Frank Miskowski, Board of Works vice president 

* * * 

East Chicago officials who are allegedly tied to the 1999 sidewalks-for-votes scheme by federal investigators and who maintain their innocence: 

Frank Kollintzas , City Council president 

Joe De La Cruz, city councilman, former police department spokesman 

Adrian Santos, city councilman 

Edward Maldonado, city controller 

Jose "Joe" Valdez, Park Department superintendent 

Pedro Porras, city engineer 

Randall Artis, city councilman 

* * * 

Businesses named in Carter's civil R.I.C.O. suit: 

JGM Enterprises, owned by county councilman Joel Markovich 

Great Lakes Engineering LLC 

Rieth-Riley Construction 

A&A Enterprises 

Ace Enterprise 

A-1 Dave's Tree Service 

Calumet Concrete & Masonry 

B&S Construction 

D/S Commercial Equipment and Construction 

H&Y Maintenance 

Residential Construction Service 

Roger & Sons Construction 

TRI Inc. 

Windstorm Enterprises 

St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Co. (which didn't participate in the scheme, but is named because it provided bond insurance for some of the defendants) 

* * * 

Contractor under federal indictment who maintains his innocence in the sidewalk scheme: 

Terrance Artis, brother of Randall Artis and part-owner of A&A Enterprises 

* * * 

Official who has pleaded guilty for his role in the concrete-for-votes scheme: 

Joel Markovich, county councilman 

* * * 

Contractors who have pleaded guilty for their roles in the sidewalk scheme: 

Robert Velligan, owner of Calumet Concrete and Masonry 

Dimitrios "Jim" Sazalis, owner of D&S Construction 

Gregory Gill of Lowell, owner of H&Y Maintenance 

Marilyn Gill, wife of Gregory Gill, whose firm, H&Y Maintenance did work for the city. 

* * * 

East Chicago officials under federal indictment for accepting payment for security work they didn't perform: 

Ed Samuels, interim police chief now on paid leave 

Miguel Arredondo, building commissioner