Operation Greylord

Starred review from April 13, 2015
True crime narratives don’t get much more suspenseful than Hake’s account of his covert work to expose the endemic corruption in the Chicago court system. While Hake was a junior prosecutor in the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office in 1979, he was appalled by the graft he witnessed; it ranged from attorneys paying off court clerks to get the names of defendants without lawyers, to judges taking bribes to dismiss drug cases. Hake’s complaints attracted the interest of the Justice Department, as none of his colleagues, who must have been aware of the same unethical behavior, had spoken up. The young prosecutor went undercover to gather evidence. The personal cost was high—his own reputation was tainted when Hake became known as someone who was on the take, and he had to balance loyalty and integrity after learning that a close friend accepted bribes. Despite the operation’s successes, Hake places the inquiry in context, noting that not every crooked judge was nailed, and that his work was only making up for the “failure of our law schools and attorney disciplinary boards.”

June 1, 2015

Justice is supposed to be blind, but in the 1980s in Cook County, IL (the county seat is Chicago), it could be bought. Former Cook County prosecutor Hake, who complained about the bribery and corruption in a preliminary hearing of a murder and sexual assault case, was instrumental in bringing the corrupt court system to justice. When the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office learned of his grievance, they recruited him to be part of the undercover "Operation Greylord." He posed as a corrupt prosecutor by accepting bribes first from attorneys and later as a private attorney by making payoffs to judges and court personnel. Hake feared that he would be discovered and realized that his life was constantly in danger even though he was working with federal authorities. From 1980 until 1984, the prosecutor's undercover operation snared 103 judges, lawyers, and court personnel, including one of the author's best friends. All but a few were convicted of bribery or tax evasion; several committed suicide rather than face justice. VERDICT Hake must be commended, as he risked his life and career to expose the corruption in the Cook County judicial system. Using his experiences, notes, and transcripts, he gives the reader a well-written and rare, inside look at how immorality prevailed for so long and the justice handed down to the key players. True crime readers will want to read this book. Recommended for all libraries.--Michael Sawyer, Pine Bluff, AR

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