Nepotism in Cicero? No Way!

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jul 8, 2011 1:30PM

Cicero Town President Larry Dominick testified yesterday that he's placed a few relatives on the town payroll. How many? Oh, a couple dozen or so. In other certainties, the sun also rises in the east, the White Sox can't beat Minnesota and everything is better with bacon.

Under extensive questioning in the wrongful termination trial filed by Merced Rojas, who alleges he was fired from his job with Cicero because he's Hispanic, Dominick acknowledged the hirings of his mother, wife, sister, brother-in-law, the mother of his son’s child, that woman’s parents, his daughter-in-law, the daughter-in-law’s sister, Dominick’s ex-wife and her brother, among others, don't necessarily square with Dominick's pledge to clean up nepotism in Cicero. Actually, Dominick's largesse to his family makes County Assessor Joe Berrios' nepotism pale, in comparison. But then, this isn't unexpected in Cicero.

This wasn't the only bombshell that came out under testimony from Dominick. Wednesday Rojas' attorney Dana Rojas suggested that a town employee hired to do work for senior citizens as a handyman instead did work for Dominick on town time.