William Beavers (D.), a former commissioner in Cook County, Ill., was sentenced to six months in prison on Wednesday for failing to pay taxes on tens of thousands of dollars he took out of his campaign fund and used for gambling and personal expenses, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Additionally, Beavers must pay a $10,000 fine and just under $39,000 in back taxes. Prosecutors asked for a sentence of at least 21 months in prison. The Chicago Tribune reports:
Any money Beavers took from his campaign fund was a loan that he later paid back, his attorneys said. He also amended his taxes "to correct any errors that may have taken place," their filing stated.
Prosecutors alleged during the March trial that Beavers used his campaign funds from 2006 through 2008 as if they were cash machines, blowing the money on slots at the Horseshoe Casino. He also was convicted of failing to pay taxes on a $68,000 campaign check that he deposited into his city pension to double his monthly payout and a combined $28,800 in monthly stipends he received from the county.
Beavers, a well known member of the Cook County Democratic Party and a champion of machine politics, claims prosecutors were going after him for refusing to wear a wire around fellow Cook County Commissioner John Daley, the brother of former Mayor Richard Daley.