Ex-secretary of state worker sentenced for bribery

Even after an eight-year federal probe nailed dozens of Illinois' secretary of state employees for bribery, including the former secretary of state-turned-governor, the corruption continued at driver's licensing facilities.
Federal prosecutors allege James Howell, of Chicago, started pocketing bribes while working at a licensing facility in Bridgeview in 2006, the same year former Gov. George Ryan's conviction capped the Operation Safe Road probe.
On Wednesday, Howell was sentenced in federal court to two years in prison for accepting bribes of $100 at a time for fraudulently issuing licenses to mostly Chinese nationals.
Howell was so busy taking bribes that he didn't have time to administer road tests for the bribe-paying applicants, so he simply filled out their test scores for them to ensure they passed, according to his plea agreement.
Howell was one of two secretary of state employees snared in an investigation into a Chinatown phony-licensing ring that has led to 19 convictions so far.
Howell, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit extortion, apologized Wednesday, saying, "I did it out of ignorance and greed."
U.S. District Judge John Darrah pointed out that Howell's conduct put people on the road who shouldn't have been there. "Lives could be lost and people could be maimed or injured because of your conduct," the judge said.
During the scheme, Howell and co-defendant Timothy Johnson, a former secretary of state employee, pocketed up to $10,000 in bribes between them, prosecutors said.
While working at the licensing facility at 9901 S. King Drive on the South Side, Johnson also took cash bribes with three other employees, sharing in $40,000 in all, prosecutors said. He pleaded guilty but has not yet been sentenced. The others haven't been charged.
After the bribery schemes came to light, the secretary of state's office ended up canceling the licenses of nearly 3,000 drivers, spokesman David Druker said Wednesday.
There haven't been any reports of wrecks resulting from motorists who were issued fake licenses, but it can't be ruled out, Druker said.
Patrick Collins, who led the prosecution team that won Ryan's conviction, said, "When you have something that's valuable like a driver's license that can be a commodity to be traded, there's always going to be the temptation for corruption."