A federal judge on Monday ruled against Ald. Edward Burke and his co-defendants in a slew of pretrial motions seeking to suppress evidence and toss certain charges in his racketeering case.
The 194-page ruling by U.S. District Judge Robert Dow means Burke’s case could finally be heading to trial more than three years after he was indicted. The judge has previously said a trial would likely come next year, since his calendar is backed up due to pandemic protocols.
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Burke’s attorneys argued in a motion filed in August 2020 that evidence gleaned from the wiretaps on Burke’s cellphone and City Hall offices, which allowed the FBI to monitor thousands of conversations the alderman had over the course of nearly a year, should be suppressed.
They accused prosecutors of directing then-Ald. Daniel Solis, who was secretly cooperating in the investigation, to have “scripted interactions” with Burke and lie to curry favor with the government. At the time, Solis himself had been recorded “committing a number of different crimes,” the motion stated.
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But Dow said in his ruling that Burke’s arguments “largely go to the strength of the evidence, not the sufficiency of the indictment and wiretap application.” It will be up to the jury to assess whether the government has proven the allegations beyond a reasonable doubt at trial, Dow said.
Burke, 78, was originally charged in a criminal complaint in January 2019. He was indicted four months later on 14 counts including racketeering, federal program bribery, attempted extortion, conspiracy to commit extortion and using interstate commerce to facilitate an unlawful activity.
The 59-page indictment outlined a series of schemes in which Burke allegedly tried to muscle developers into hiring his law firm, Klafter & Burke, to appeal their property taxes. Among the projects Burke tried to capitalize on was the massive $800 million renovation of the post office in the West Loop, according to the charges.
Also charged was Burke’s longtime aide, Peter Andrews, who was accused of assisting the alderman in attempting to shake down two businessmen seeking to renovate a Burger King restaurant in the 14th Ward.
The indictment also accused developer Charles Cui of hiring Burke’s law firm in exchange for the alderman’s help with a sign permit and financing deal for a project in the Portage Park neighborhood.
All three have pleaded not guilty.
Burke is the city’s longest-serving alderman who’s been on the City Council since 1969. His current term ends in May 2023.
This is a developing story. Check back for details.
