Apr 17, 2006 11:00 pm US/Central
License For Bribes Paved Way For Ryan Verdict
Convictions Follow Years Of Legal Twists And Turns
by Derrick Blakley
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
The guilty verdicts of George Ryan and Larry Warner follow more than a decade of legal twists and turns in the License for Bribes scandal.
A tragic accident and a government whistleblower set the entire process in motion.
CBS 2's Derrick Blakely reviews the key events in this case.
"In 1998, this was a license for bribes case. That's how it started," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Collins.
The License for Bribes case, which led to George Ryan's conviction Monday, began largely with whistleblower Tammy Raynor.
"I wanted the conviction because I wanted this to be a deterrent," she said.
In 1993, working at the McCook secretary of state's office, Raynor first reported the corruption: Examiners selling truckers' licenses for bribes, with money funneled to Secretary of State George Ryan's campaign. But nothing changed.
"That put the entire state, the nation even, in jeopardy because people were getting licenses that were not qualified to have them," Raynor said.
In November 1994, her fears were borne out. The six children of Rev. Scott and Janet Willis were killed in fiery crash near Milwaukee. The driver, Richard Guzman, illegally bought his license from the Melrose Park office.
In September 1998, federal agents raided that Melrose Park office.
In April 1999, two former McCook supervisors were charged with accepting bribes for licenses. Five months later, a former trucking company official admitted he paid to fix Guzman's license.
In February 2000, Dean Bauer, Ryan's close friend and inspector general, was charged with obstructing justice for burying the investigation into the Willis accident. Bauer pleaded guilty a year later.
On Monday, prosecutors said that may have been Ryan's most detestable crime.
"That is a low water mark for public service, for a governor or secretary of state to abuse his office in that fashion," U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald said.
Dan Willis, whose six siblings were killed in that horrible crash, had nothing to say as he left the courthouse.
But speaking by phone from their Tennessee home, his parents told CBS 2: "When we listened to George Ryan after the verdict, he had no remorse. He took no responsibility. The arrogance is still there."
Both Tammy Raynor and Rev. Willis say the guilty verdict means closure.
But Rev. Willis is concerned about Ryan's appeal. He said, "That door is not closed. We'd like to close it."
Obviously referring to the Willis family, Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Collins said, "There's a very high price the public pays for corruption."
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
