A federal jury on Wednesday found Riverdale Mayor Lawrence Jackson guilty of perjury and obstruction of justice, a verdict that may force the four-term mayor from office.
The verdict came just hours after prosecutors and defense attorneys presented conflicting portrayals of Jackson’s conduct in a 2021 deposition.
The charges stemmed from Jackson’s deposition in a civil lawsuit brought by Tri-State Disposal, a waste company that had trash disposal contracts in Riverdale for years.
The prosecution reminded the jury they had heard several witnesses testify during the weeklong trial, which began Nov. 5.
“Several years ago, the defendant took that same oath,” prosecuting attorney Kirsten Moran said. “But the defendant didn’t honor that oath. He lied. He lied repeatedly.”
The federal indictment against Jackson was filed in late 2023. He was elected to his fourth term in April, after beating two primary challengers in February despite the ongoing proceedings.
Jackson will likely have to step down as Riverdale mayor. According to Illinois statute, “a person convicted of a felony shall be ineligible to hold an office created by the Constitution of this State until the completion of his sentence.”
When Ford Heights Mayor Charles Griffin was convcited of a felony in September 2024, he resigned immediately and his attorney said removal from office was automatic as soon as the verdict was read.
Central to the Riverdale case was the relationship between Jackson and Riverdale businessman James Bracken. Bracken played a substantial role in the operations of Centennial Holdings, a business owned by Jackson and his wife. Evidence brought by the government included texts and emails showing Bracken informed Jackson about payroll, timesheets and other topics relating to the business.
The prosecution alleged Jackson lied under oath six times while being deposed in the Tri-State lawsuit. In one of the instances, Jackson was asked who ran the day-to-day operations of the business, and said it was his wife.
The prosecution said the business was really run by Bracken, who regularly distributed payments to Jackson through an intermediary, and that Jackson was lying to conceal their relationship.
“He wanted this relationship with James Bracken to stay hidden, so he corrupted the truth-seeking mission of that sworn testimony,” Moran said.
The relationship between Bracken and Jackson was relevant to the Tri-State lawsuit because Tri-State had alleged companies associated with Bracken were being unfairly favored.
The prosecution said Jackson contacted Bracken for help finding a new waste company to replace Tri-State, and Bracken then introduced him to another company, Flood Brothers. The prosecution characterized this as Bracken helping Jackson rid himself of a troublesome contractor.
“What’s a few more dollars when it means getting rid of the defendant’s headache?” Moran said.
Flood Brothers was contracted by the village to conduct a spring cleanup event in May 2018 for $18,000, despite the fact that Tri-State was already obligated to do that work under its existing contract.
When asked in the deposition if he had had anything to do with the hiring of Flood Brothers for that event, Jackson said no, and that he had been introduced to the company by the village administrator, Tim Williams. The prosecution said these both were lies, and that Jackson was introduced to Flood Brothers through Bracken as part of their ongoing relationship.
The lawsuit ultimately ended in a loss for Tri-State, with Judge Sara Ellis finding there was insufficient evidence the company had been subject to political retribution. The prosecution argued that the information about the relationship between Jackson and Bracken was materially relevant to that case, and potentially could have affected its outcome.
Jackson’s lawyers argued that he had not lied in the deposition, and that his answers had been honest.
Defense lawyer Gabrielle Sansonetti said any inaccuracy in Jackson’s answers was the result of a combination of honest mistakes on his part and poor questioning on the part Mark La Rose, the attorney deposing him.
“Mistakes happen, and they happen often, because people are human,” Sansonetti said. “Mayor Jackson’s answers in that deposition were truthful.”
Sansonetti said LaRose’s questions were unclear, citing one in particular from the deposition transcript: “Okay, so just to set the record straight, Centennial Holdings, owned by you and your wife, may or may not have done or is doing business with Riverdale Materials or any company owned by the Bracken family?”
“[LaRose’s questions] were compounding, they were confusing, they were vague, they were aggressive and they were argumentative,” Sansonetti said.
Sansonetti said the hiring of Flood Brothers was the routine working of municipal government, as the village was trying to cut costs by switching to a less expensive contractor due to service issues with Tri-State.
“There was no question that the Flood Brothers contract was the better contract,” Sansonetti said.
Sansonetti also suggested that LaRose had a personal vendetta against Jackson due to Tri-State losing the lucrative contract with the city.
“That’s why he hopes and prays that Mayor Jackson goes to jail,” Sansonetti said. “Because his client lost a valuable contract.”
Sansonetti concluded by appealing Jackson’s good character to the jury, describing him as someone who went from growing up in low-income housing to dedicating his life to public service.
“He sought to serve, and did serve, the residents of the city of Riverdale,” Sansonsetti said. “I do not know the level of grit and determination and integrity it must take to live the life that Mayor Jackson has lived.”
The prosecution said evidence proved Jackson did not make mistakes, but intentionally obscured important information.
“A mistake is not an intentional lie,” said prosecuting attorney Megan DeMarco. “How do you know that the defendant’s lies were not mistakes, not confusion? Because of the evidence.”
elewis@chicagotribune.com
