Ex-State Rep. Connie Howard Gets 3 Month Prison Sentence

Norman Parish | As of Thursday, December 17, 2015

Former State Rep. Connie Howard received a three-month prison sentence on fraud charges.
Former State Rep. Connie Howard received a three-month prison sentence on fraud charges.

Former Ill. State Rep. Connie Howard was sentenced last week to three months of prison on charges of stealing money from a charity, officials said.

 In a fraud scheme, Howard admitted in 2013 that she stole $28,000 of $76,700 raised by “Tee Off For Technology Celebrity Golf Outing.” She took the money between 2003 and 2008 for “personal and political use, including expenses associated with the promotion of her campaign,” according to prosecutors.

 Aside from the prison sentence, U.S. District Judge Richard Mills also sentenced Howard to additional three months of home confinement and two years of probation.

Howard, who was a legislator when she committed fraud, was ordered to pay back the money to the Chicago Urban League and the Black United Fund, groups that she allegedly used as conduits for donations to her private scholarship fund.

 No more than five scholarships were given out, federal officials said.

 Howard, who served the 34th district, chaired the House Computer Technology Committee in the legislature. Her charity was billed as a way to raise scholarship money for students seeking computer – science degrees.

 She also chaired an advisory committee of the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, which attempted to help youth learn about digital technology.

 In a plea agreement, Howard is a potential witness in a trial scheduled for former legislative aide Lloyd Kelly, said Sharon Paul, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Springfield.

 Kelly is charged with mail fraud involving a $1.2 million grant. Kelly pleaded not guilty in the case.

 After Howard received her sentence, Tim Blair, executive director of the legislative retirement system, said he sent a notice to Illinois State’s Attorney Lisa Madigan on whether Howard’s state pension should be stopped because of her conviction.

 “We sent a letter on whether her conviction was tied to work,” Blair said.

 Last week, officials also attempted to temporarily halt Howard’s next pension check, officials said.

Howard is not expected to start serving her conviction until sometime next year.  The prison site for Howard’s conviction has yet to be selected, officials said.

Howard’s lawyer, Scott Sabin, could not be reached for comment on Chicago Citizen Newspaper’s deadline.

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