East Chicago Case Continues to Move Forward

Knowledge of Linda Pence’s involvement in the East Chicago RICO case (about which I have blogged much in the past), has now become so widespread that virtually any article mentioning the case now seems to invariably mention her and her involvement (something she tried to hide from Hoosier voters, no less).

With her record of not being open and forthright with Hoosiers, with voters up north constantly reminded of her ties to the biggest corruption case in Indiana history, with Zoeller’s name carrying huge weight and stature in the south, and with central Indiana a reliably Republican fortress for Mitch and other GOP candidates, what chance does Linda Pence really have?

From the Post-Tribune:

HAMMOND — Former East Chicago City Councilman Frank Kollintzas, whom authorities believe fled to Greece three years ago to avoid a 12-year prison sentence, still should have to pay back his share of the $24 million he owes city taxpayers, state Attorney General Steve Carter said.

Carter four years ago filed a civil racketeering lawsuit against Kollintzas, former East Chicago Mayor Robert Pastrick and numerous others in connection with their roles in a paving-for-votes scheme that resulted in the criminal conviction of a dozen city officials. As Carter’s term in office winds down, and with no trial date yet set, the state has reached settlements with several defendants.

(Read more after the leap)

This week, noting that Kollintzas has not responded to correspondence connected to the trial since he fled to Europe in February 2005, Carter filed a motion for a default judgment.

“We don’t anticipate getting a hold of him,” Carter said Friday. “We will accept a judgment at this point, with the damages to be determined later.”

Carter has reached pre-trial settlements with several contractors and lesser defendants in the case, recovering $1.2 million.

Kollintzas and his co-defendants in the criminal case already owe restitution from their criminal convictions and federal prosecutors already have liquidated numerous bank accounts and retirement funds in his name. A divorce filing by his wife, Joanna, was all that kept them from forcing her to sell off their house.

A default judgment will not move the state ahead of the federal judgment and Carter acknowledges the prospects of collecting much more from Kollintzas are “slim.”

“It’s just one of those things,” he said. “We’ve got to prepare the case against the defendants we have there when the trial goes. If he’s not going to step forward to settle, this is a pretty efficient way of settling it.”

The RICO case has become something of a campaign issue in the race to succeed Carter, who is not seeking another term. Carter’s top deputy, Greg Zoeller, is the Republican candidate and has pledged to press the case if elected. The Democratic nominee, Linda Pence, has said she would have to examine the case, and has done legal work for a construction firm that was among the defendants.