Board of Aldermen

gone corporate · PostJun 02, 2022#8762022-06-02T17:01+00:00

Here's the first news coverage, which I'm sure will be updated throughout the day...

STL Post-Dispatch: St. Louis Board of Aldermen President Lewis Reed, two other aldermen, indicted on federal corruption charges

Right now, the news is light on specifics other than the who's and where's, less on the what's, when's, why's, and how's.

chriss752 · PostJun 02, 2022#8772022-06-02T17:25+00:00

addxb2 wrote: ↑
Jun 02, 2022
Can someone save me the time and energy, who takes over for Reed?

My guess would be whoever is the longest serving member of the board of alderman or if they have a floor leader other than Reed.

pattimagee · PostJun 02, 2022#8782022-06-02T17:45+00:00

Here's the flow:

Rule 2 - Powers & Duties
1. President
2. Vice - President
3. Floor Leader
4. Assistant Floor Leader

President	Lewis E. Reed, Democrat
Vice President	Alderman Jeffrey Boyd, 22nd Ward, Democrat
Majority Floor Leader	Alderman Joe Vollmer, 10th Ward, Democrat

chriss752 · PostJun 02, 2022#8792022-06-02T17:57+00:00

^So, we could be talking about, at least for a few months, BOA President Joe Vollmer?

Ebsy · PostJun 02, 2022#8802022-06-02T18:15+00:00

I'd say it seems almost certain that Muhammad Almuttan was flipped as part of the earlier cigarette smuggling sting and wore a wire during all the shenanigans during this operation. Truly an impressive bust!

symphonicpoet · PostJun 02, 2022#8812022-06-02T18:38+00:00

gone corporate wrote: ↑
Jun 02, 2022
Here's the first news coverage, which I'm sure will be updated throughout the day...

STL Post-Dispatch: St. Louis Board of Aldermen President Lewis Reed, two other aldermen, indicted on federal corruption charges

Right now, the news is light on specifics other than the who's and where's, less on the what's, when's, why's, and how's.

Have you read the indictment? It's got lengthy quotations from meetings between "John Doe" and the indicted aldermen and quite a lot of detail on when, why, and how much money exchanged hands. Cash. By the fistful. Enough detail I'm inclined to believe they actually flipped "John Doe" himself. (Not that it makes any difference how much you anonymize him when you know he owns a trucking company, a development company, and built a gas station and plans many other developments in the area.)

It's quite long, so I've only read about the first third so far, and skimmed the rest, but holy cow is there a lot!

PostJun 02, 2022#8822022-06-02T18:41+00:00

Ebsy wrote: ↑
Jun 02, 2022
I'd say it seems almost certain that Muhammad Almuttan was flipped as part of the earlier cigarette smuggling sting and wore a wire during all the shenanigans during this operation. Truly an impressive bust!

That would make sense. They about have to have flipped somebody. Maybe even several somebodies.

framer · PostJun 02, 2022#8832022-06-02T18:46+00:00

I guess this will make any future tax abatements that much harder to pass. Might really slow down development.

jshank83 · PostJun 02, 2022#8842022-06-02T19:12+00:00

I remember someone on this site saying this kind of stuff was going on and basically getting attacked for it. Just made me think back to that when all this came out.

symphonicpoet · PostJun 02, 2022#8852022-06-02T19:14+00:00

^Alternately we can hope that they will be granted on the merits rather than on the bribe. It actually makes me wonder if there was some truth to Green's accusation that NFL money influenced Reed's vote on the stadium plan all those years ago. I've been trying hard to like Collins-Muhammad. He comes across as an enthusiastic kid with a lot of passion for his neighborhood. But he's clearly had some serious judgment problems, and this is probably the single biggest. I've been ambivalent about Reed, but this really ices it. Local politics will be better without all of them. And most especially without "John Doe."

Laife Fulk · PostJun 02, 2022#8862022-06-02T19:24+00:00

jshank83 wrote: ↑
Jun 02, 2022
I remember someone on this site saying this kind of stuff was going on and basically getting attacked for it. Just made me think back to that when all this came out.

Well... the person they claimed was part of a pay-to-play situation (Alderwoman Pihl) was not part of this indictment. I don't think this absolves the UrbanSTL poster from any criticism for their vague statements.

chriss752 · PostJun 02, 2022#8872022-06-02T19:35+00:00

I stand by what I said about Tina. I'll let the process do what it does. Name me next time.

Laife Fulk · PostJun 02, 2022#8882022-06-02T19:43+00:00

doellingd · PostJun 02, 2022#8892022-06-02T20:50+00:00

This is the pay-to-play you likely remember

O_FallonBlock_link wrote:Fighting for our community. It was brought to the residents', surrounding the historical O'Fallon Park, that our current City Hall representative approved the building of ANOTHER gas station. We, the residents knew nothing of it, till April, 2021.

Apparently, the 21st Ward Alderman attended a Board of Adjustment (BOA) ZOOM hearing on December 24, 2020, @ 9:am without ANY resident's knowledge or approval. That's right. You read it right, December 24, 2020, @ 9:am during a COVID/Christmas season when no one is thinking about new business. During COVID then and now persons are focused on keeping themselves alive! People want to get back to work, receiving mortgage/utility assistance or searching for a local food pantry.

In our effort to stop the building, The O'Fallon Block Link (surrounding residents/blocks) came together to file a suit, Cause No.@ 2122-CC000904. What a mess!

O_FallonBlock_link wrote:oI will note this. . . it definitely appears as a "Pay to Play" situation. Our current representative is the Alderman who is continually interviewed/filmed by the local media as driving 'without a valid Mo. Driver's License'. Yep that's him.

Von Phul is located right at Hwy 70 East @ the Adelaide Exit. This exit is one block north of our historic O'Fallon Park, The Pink sisters and 4 exits west of Busch Stadium. We, The O'Fallon Block Link, filed for a Restraining Order and for an Appeal of the St. Louis City Board of Adjustment's ruling dated January, 2021. Without going into the details of the suit, we feal confident that the Court will rule in our favor and grant the suit. For sure, once this suit is granted, I guarantee Ward Residents will come out and speak against any building at that Von Phul location.

We are following the proper guidelines, when we have proof not all parties involved did not, to stop the construction of anything, let alone a gas station @ 5337 Von Phul.

I will keep everyone posted.
M. Long

O_FallonBlock_link wrote:The suit is our request for a TRO (to stop constructing) and Permission to File a Late Appeal to The Board of Adjustment.

We are seeking a Pro Bono Attorney to continue this case on our behalf. Does anyone know of an attorney, with RE knowledge? If so, have her/him phone 314 972-4685? Thanks.

Ebsy · PostJun 02, 2022#8902022-06-02T23:07+00:00

It really is incredible to me that Lewis Reed is stupid enough to take bribes from a guy who he had to have known was picked up by the Feds in 2017 as part of the big Palestinian cigarette smuggling/money laundering bust. Now I am not experienced at lining my own pockets in exchange for tax abatements, but it should have been pretty ***** obvious that Almuttan had been turned by the Feds and was wearing a wire. Jeffrey Boyd and John Collins-Muhammad I can more easily buy being stupid enough to not pick up on that.

dbInSouthCity · PostJun 03, 2022#8912022-06-03T00:14+00:00

^ as I told someone at city hall today

Ebsy · PostJun 03, 2022#8922022-06-03T00:53+00:00

Yeah I initially thought it would all be campaign donations, but no, he is just straight up taking envelopes full of money. Seemed to be business as usual for him as well! I have suspected for years that Reed and his allied on the Board have been taking bribes and kickbacks, but dare we even find out how widespread it has been? The very foundations of our City's government has come into doubt.

PostJun 03, 2022#8932022-06-03T00:57+00:00

And judging from Reed's evil monologue about his scheme to take over 10 of 14 seats on the new board, hard to believe that the SW City aldermen haven't been getting in on the action. We probably all should be taking a closer look at Reed's other allies on the Board.

mikenewell48 · PostJun 03, 2022#8942022-06-03T02:36+00:00

It really is incredible to me that Lewis Reed is stupid enough to take bribes from a guy who he had to have known was picked up by the Feds in 2017

“Three great forces rule the world: stupidity, fear and greed.”

― Albert Einstein

imran · PostJun 03, 2022#8952022-06-03T02:51+00:00

So an indictment is a charge, correct? A case would proceed etc. to determine a verdict. Technically there is a chance that someone could be cleared of the charges.
Guessing the City has insurance for officers to pay for defense attorneys or would this be a private expense?

downtown2007 · PostJun 03, 2022#8962022-06-03T02:56+00:00

Ebsy wrote:And judging from Reed's evil monologue about his scheme to take over 10 of 14 seats on the new board, hard to believe that the SW City aldermen haven't been getting in on the action. We probably all should be taking a closer look at Reed's other allies on the Board.

What makes you think progressives aren’t in on the action? Green hands out a lot of incentives.

Ebsy · PostJun 03, 2022#8972022-06-03T03:06+00:00

downtown2007 wrote: ↑
Jun 03, 2022
Ebsy wrote:And judging from Reed's evil monologue about his scheme to take over 10 of 14 seats on the new board, hard to believe that the SW City aldermen haven't been getting in on the action. We probably all should be taking a closer look at Reed's other allies on the Board.
What makes you think progressives aren’t in on the action? Green hands out a lot of incentives.

Definitely a possibility, but I think it is natural to suspicious initially of the aldermen we know to be allies of Reed.

PostJun 03, 2022#8982022-06-03T03:08+00:00

imran wrote: ↑
Jun 03, 2022
So an indictment is a charge, correct? A case would proceed etc. to determine a verdict. Technically there is a chance that someone could be cleared of the charges.
Guessing the City has insurance for officers to pay for defense attorneys or would this be a private expense?

This is a good question, my initial thought it that they would be on the hook for their own defense attorneys.

STL526 · PostJun 03, 2022#8992022-06-03T03:39+00:00

downtown2007 wrote: ↑
Jun 03, 2022
Ebsy wrote:And judging from Reed's evil monologue about his scheme to take over 10 of 14 seats on the new board, hard to believe that the SW City aldermen haven't been getting in on the action. We probably all should be taking a closer look at Reed's other allies on the Board.
What makes you think progressives aren’t in on the action? Green hands out a lot of incentives.

For whatever it is worth, Boyd said "...and only if some of these ***** little young white progressives act a ***** fool, you know. They can shut sh*t down ... So, we just have to make sure that we hold our sh*t together. For the most part, I don't anticipate a problem." That's not to say that the progressives of the BOA couldn't also be colluding in illegal activities somewhere, but it doesn't sound like they run with Lewis' crew.

downtown2007 · PostJun 03, 2022#9002022-06-03T03:54+00:00

STL526 wrote:
downtown2007 wrote: ↑
Jun 03, 2022
Ebsy wrote:And judging from Reed's evil monologue about his scheme to take over 10 of 14 seats on the new board, hard to believe that the SW City aldermen haven't been getting in on the action. We probably all should be taking a closer look at Reed's other allies on the Board.
What makes you think progressives aren’t in on the action? Green hands out a lot of incentives.
For whatever it is worth, Boyd said "...and only if some of these ***** little young white progressives act a ***** fool, you know. They can shut sh*t down ... So, we just have to make sure that we hold our sh*t together. For the most part, I don't anticipate a problem." That's not to say that the progressives of the BOA couldn't also be colluding in illegal activities somewhere, but it doesn't sound like they run with Lewis' crew.

There isn’t just one circle of corruption. It’s also interesting the ones indicated were some of the most vocal critics of the Mayor which takes out her enemies. There are many alderman that do the same stuff. They just don’t get caught.

Board of Aldermen

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