You Can Now Report Corrupt Illinois Public Officials Online

SPRINGFIELD, IL — In an effort to combat the state's long-standing tradition of public corruption, the statewide special investigations unit of Illinois State Police has created an online form for people to report suspected corruption directly to state police.

Director Brendan Kelly set up the unit within ISP's criminal investigation division in March 2020 with a focus on investigating criminal misconduct by elected and appointed government officials at the state and local levels.

“The Illinois State Police Special Investigations Unit is dedicated to seeking out those who abuse their position and power to take advantage of others, betraying the public’s trust,” Kelly said in a statement.

With the new online form, members of the public can send in confidential tips to state police, including allegations like embezzlement, manipulating contracts for personal benefits, benefiting from federal or state-funded programs, wire fraud and money laundering.

According to state police, the new online form will assist anyone unsure about where to send in corruption allegations, creating a centralized reporting system for ISP to "streamline the process" of triaging all online submissions and determining which agency is best suited to handle investigations into them.

“By making it easier for the public to confidentially report suspected corruption, we can begin restoring the public’s trust in government," Kelly said. "ISP will continue to work with its partners in law enforcement to investigate misconduct and corruption.”

In its more than three and a half year history, the statewide SIU has opened 82 cases, according to state police. Many of those are joint investigations with the Justice Department and other federal agencies.

Illinois history of deeply rooted public corruption is well-documented.

A University of Illinois-Chicago analysis of Justice Department data found the Chicago area had an average of 41 corruption convictions per year from 1976 to 2021, making it one of the most corruption-prone areas in America. Statewide, the study found Illinois was second only to Louisiana in the per-capita corruption convictions.

Two of the last five governors — Republican George Ryan and Democrat Rod Blagojevich — were sentenced to prison. Chicago's longest-serving alderman, Southwest Side Democrat Ed Burke, is this week on trial for corruption in federal court. And the state's longest-serving lawmaker, former Illinois Democratic Party chair Speaker Mike Madigan, is due to stand trial for racketeering in the spring — with a federal jury already finding all four defendants guilty in the related ComEd bribery trial.

There is also a long list of less notorious state lawmakers who have faced criminal charges in the past few years.

Announcing the new online corruption reporting form, Illinois State Police pointed to two cases its the special anti-corruption unit investigated in recent years.

In October 2020, former Winnebago County Coroner William Hintz was accused of using more than $10,000 on personal business and allegedly stole about $2,500 from the families of people who had been cremated at the county's expect. He pleaded guilty in July 2022 and resigned in exchange for 180 days in jail.

And in February, a 68-year-old former DeWitt County road commissioner called Eldon Cusey was charged with one count of theft, four counts of official misconduct and 17 counts of forgery — charges that carry a combined maximum sentence of 120 years behind bars — after he allegedly used a township credit card for personal purchases and submitted forged receipts. He pleaded guilty to a single count of official misconduct in exchange for 18 months probation.

According to report from the DeWitt County Sheriff's Office, Wapella Township trustees learned that Cusey was cutting off a portion of receipts containing his personal purchases then putting the receipts back together and making photocopies to submit to the clerk. The township trustees were advised they could proceed with criminal charges but they decided not to.

Online form: File a Citizen Complaint of an Elected Official, Appointee, or Employee of a Public Body