Ex-South Suburban Mayor Sentenced To Prison For Lying Under Oath: Report

RIVERDALE, IL — Riverdale’s former mayor, Lawrence Jackson, was sentenced last week to six months in prison for lying under oath, the Chicago Tribune reported.

He was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice last year, forcing him to resign and forfeit his pension, according to the Tribune.

The case was tied to accusations that Jackson lied about his relationship with the recycling and waste hauling company Riverdale Materials LLC during a Feb. 25, 2021, deposition, Patch reported in 2023, when he was indicted.

Jackson had testified in a civil lawsuit filed by Tri-State Disposal, naming him and the village as defendants.

That lawsuit, filed in February 2018, alleged that Jackson had given preferential treatment to Riverdale Materials and retaliated against Tri-State for opposing the issuance of a permit to its competitor.

Tri-State Disposal Inc. vs. the Village of Riverdale and Lawrence Jackson was eventually resolved when a federal judge sided with the Riverdale defendants, but federal prosecutors said that during his testimony, Jackson had corruptly obstructed the lawsuit by lying.

According to the indictment, Jackson and his wife had a trucking company in their name called Centennial Holdings. But prosecutors said it was actually run by Riverdale Materials owners James Bracken and his wife, Kelly.

During his deposition, Jackson sought to hide Bracken's "extensive involvement" in his company's operation, his relationship with Bracken and Bracken's involvement in a scheme to replace Tri-State with competitor Flood Brothers.

The Riverdale mayor falsely claimed that the village administrator had introduced him to the other garbage company and recommended it replace Tri-State as the village's garbage collector.

Jackson’s lawyers argued any inaccuracy was due to honest mistakes and poor questioning by the deposing attorney, the Tribune reported Thursday, noting Bracken has not been charged.