Cook County Politician on Trial for Tax Evasion

I don’t know anything about William Beavers, the Cook County commissioner, but at age 78 shouldn’t he be living on a golf course somewhere in Arizona?

Instead Beavers is being tried for tax evasion.  Prosecutors allege that between the years 2006 – 2008 he took well over $200,000 from his campaign coffers and gambled it away at his favorite Indiana casino.  Beavers is not on trial for using campaign money for personal expenses, which is illegal in and of itself.  Instead he is on trial for failing to report the money as income.  Remember, to avoid IRS tax problems, all income must be reported, even illegal source income.  I suppose the misappropriation issue is a separate case.

The defendant has pleaded not guilty.  He previously announced that he would be testifying in his own defense once the prosecution had rested, but it looks like he will not take the stand afterall.  Beavers’ tax attorneys are trying to make the case that the money taken from his campaign was actually a series of loans that Beavers intended to pay back.  But so far there is no documentary evidence to substantiate this claim.