James DeLeo
Encyclopedia
James A. DeLeo was a Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 member of the Illinois Senate
Illinois Senate
The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the state of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. The Illinois Senate is made up of 59 senators elected from...

, representing the 10th district since 1992, and is an Assistant Majority Leader. Earlier he served in the Illinois House of Representatives
Illinois House of Representatives
The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The state House of Representatives is made of 118 representatives elected from...

. He announced his retirement from the State Senate in 2010, and left office in August 2010. Democrat John G. Mulroe
John G. Mulroe
John G. Mulroe is a Democratic state senator and lawyer from Chicago, Illinois, he represents the 10th Illinois State Senate District. He was appointed to complete the term of Democrat James DeLeo in August 2010 and elected to a full term in the Illinois State Senate in November 2010...

 was appointed to replace him and defeated Republican Brian Doherty
Brian Doherty (politician)
Brian G. Doherty was the alderman of the 41st Ward of the City of Chicago from 1991 to 2011. First elected to the Chicago City Council in 1991 when he defeated longtime incumbent Roman Pucinski, Doherty represented portions of the city's Northwest Side, including O'Hare International Airport...

 for a full term in office in the 2010 general election.

Education

DeLeo was educated in the Chicago Public Schools
Chicago Public Schools
Chicago Public Schools, commonly abbreviated as CPS by local residents and politicians and officially classified as City of Chicago School District #299 for funding and districting reasons, is a large school district that manages over 600 public elementary and high schools in Chicago, Illinois...

, he later attended Chicago's Loop Junior College (now Harold Washington College
Harold Washington College
Harold Washington College is a community college within the City Colleges of Chicago system of Chicago, Illinois. It is located in the Loop at 30 E Lake St...

) and DePaul University
DePaul University
DePaul University is a private institution of higher education and research in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul...

 where he majored in political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...

.

Early career

DeLeo worked for the Chicago Police Department
Chicago Police Department
The Chicago Police Department, also known as the CPD, is the principal law enforcement agency of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States, under the jurisdiction of the Mayor of Chicago. It is the largest police department in the Midwest and the second largest local law enforcement agency in the...

 and then later the Cook County
Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...

 Sheriff’s Department. Later in his career, he was promoted and made chief bailiff for Wayne Olson.

State representative

Before becoming a state senator, DeLeo served in the Illinois House of Representatives. In 1992, State Rep. DeLeo was indicted by a federal grand jury in the "Operation Greylord
Operation Greylord
Operation Greylord was an investigation conducted jointly by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the IRS Criminal Investigation Division into corruption in the judiciary of Cook County, Illinois...

" investigation of corruption in Cook County for taking bribes. DeLeo negotiated a guilty plea on a misdemeanor tax offense, and was placed on probation.

Senate career

DeLeo sponsored legislation to increase funding for diabetes research by giving individual taxpayers the opportunity to designate contributions on their income tax returns. He also sponsored resolution SJR0061 of the 95th General Assembly honoring the life the late Rosemont, Illinois
Rosemont, Illinois
Rosemont is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States located immediately northwest of Chicago. The village was incorporated in 1956, though it had been settled long before that...

 Mayor, Donald E. Stephens. In the Senate DeLeo served as Vice-Chairman of the Senate Committee on Executive Appointments, and was a member of the Senate Executive Committee and the Senate Local Government Committee.

DeLeo recommended that the state of Illinois hire or promote Anne Spilotro, the widow of murdered mob associate Michael Spilotro
Michael Spilotro
Michael Peter "Micky" Spilotro was the brother of Anthony "Tony the Ant" Spilotro and was an associate of the Chicago La Cosa Nostra organized crime organization referred to as "The Outfit".-Family background:...

, according to records of the office of former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich
Rod Blagojevich
Rod R. Blagojevich is an American politician who served as the 40th Governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009. A Democrat, Blagojevich was a State Representative before being elected to the United States House of Representatives representing parts of Chicago...

. DeLeo one of the top go-to guys at the Illinois Statehouse for jobs inside the Blagojevich administration. DeLeo chose to leave office in August 2010 and Democratic candidate John G. Mulroe
John G. Mulroe
John G. Mulroe is a Democratic state senator and lawyer from Chicago, Illinois, he represents the 10th Illinois State Senate District. He was appointed to complete the term of Democrat James DeLeo in August 2010 and elected to a full term in the Illinois State Senate in November 2010...

 was appointed to complete the remainder of his term. Mulroe ran for and won a full term in 2010 general election.

Personal life

DeLeo lives with his wife and their two children in Chicago.

DeLeo co-owns a bar in Chicago, the Tavern on Rush, with Illinois Senate President John Cullerton
John Cullerton
John J. Cullerton is a Democratic member of the Illinois Senate, representing the 6th district since his appointment in 1991. He was elected President of the Illinois Senate in 2009.- Early life :...

 (D-Chicago) and others.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK