Nearly four years after his name first surfaced in connection with a bribe arrangement between two sitting Democratic lawmakers, politically connected businessman James Weiss is finally having his day in court.
CHICAGO – Nearly four years after his name first surfaced in connection with a bribe arrangement between two sitting lawmakers, politically connected businessman James Weiss is finally having his day in court.Weiss, who is married to former state Rep.
“In 2019, ladies and gentlemen, the defendant had two sitting politicians on his company payroll,” O’Neill said of Weiss’ business, Collage LLC. “It was all to benefit his business, Collage, the sweepstakes machines and his own bottom line.” The trial, which is expected to last about a week, will feature long-anticipated testimony from one of the two ex-legislators Weiss is alleged to have bribed: former state Sen. Terry Link, D-Vernon Hills. Link happened to be cooperating with the government and wearing a wire when then-state Rep. Luis Arroyo, D-Chicago, offered him a bribe in an attempt to further the cause of legalizing sweepstakes machines. Arroyo pleaded guilty to the bribery charges in 2021.
At that point, Arroyo, who had a lobbying business that lobbied the city of Chicago, had been receiving monthly checks from two sweepstakes machine companies related to Weiss for approximately 10 months. While the government characterized those $2,500 payments as bribes, Sorosky characterized them Tuesday as “legitimate consulting fees.”
The exchange would eventually contribute to the end of both men’s political careers. Arroyo began serving a 57-month prison sentence last summer after pleading guilty on bribery charges, while Link is still awaiting a sentencing date for his admission of guilt on one count of tax evasion. Sorosky told the jury on Tuesday that Weiss honestly believed that Katherine Hunter existed, and therefore hired her in good faith to appease Link, who at the time was the lead negotiator on gambling legislation in the Illinois Senate.
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