New federal corruption charges state a former Illinois House member conspired to use bribes to get a red-light traffic camera contract renewed and more of them installed in a suburban Chicago community. Traffic cameras collected $5.5 million during a decade in the suburb.
After paying $1 billion in red-light camera fees, Illinoisans deserve to know more about how the devices are being pushed with their local political leaders.
A Cook County commissioner quits as a former city administrator faces a bribery charge. Both played roles in the rise of red-light cameras and vendor SafeSpeed.
Chicago and the state of Illinois are notorious around the country for high-profile corruption convictions. Rod Blagojevich settles back in after the former governor’s imprisonment for corruption.
Chicago’s $1.15 billion projected budget gap is the latest in a decades-long string of structural deficits. Making Chicago’s high taxes worse is not the solution.