Suffredin Takes a Hit

The Cook County State's Attorney race has been contentious, with Democratic candidates taking plenty of shots at each other in a televised debate and myriad endorsements. [Ed note: I love when there's a usage note in the dictionary.] Now Jesse Jackson's candidate Larry Suffredin is under renewed scrutiny for his work as a corporate lobbyist.

According to the Sun Times, Suffredin, a Cook County commissioner from Evanston lobbied on behalf of Kankakee Regional Landfill LLC. Although the Kankakee city council has approved its permits, litigation and opposition from local groups has stalled the project. Last June, Attorney General Lisa Madigan sued the company for illegally dumping construction waste at the site. The suit is still pending.

Further complicating the matter for Suffredin is the company's connection to Fred Barbara. Barbara, a friend of Mayor Daley's, had at one time over 60 percent of his garbage-hauling business with the city. Although he's never been convicted of a crime, he's been arrested five times, and during the Family Secrets trial was alleged to have participated in the bombing of Horwath's Restaurant in Elmwood Park, a known mob hangout. Suffredin doesn't seem too bothered by the connection, though. "I don't think I've ever met Fred [Barbara] in my life," Suffredin told the Sun-Times. "I didn't know he had an interest in it." Barbara has "not been a client. He's been an owner of a client that I worked for ... If I had directly represented him, it'd bother me," Suffredin said.