Chicago Hired Truck scam partner apologizes

The Chicago Sun-Times reports:

She kissed her husband and then stood up in court Friday to admit what she did was wrong and that she let everyone down -- especially her two young daughters.

Shortly after, a federal judge showed Debra Coveliers mercy, sentencing her to three years' probation and sparing her prison time for her role in a scam to get illegal city trucking contracts with her husband, a city sewer worker.

Prosecutors asked Friday to delay the sentencing of Richard Coveliers, who pleaded guilty in July. Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Collins sought the delay because of his cooperation in the federal prosecution of another City Hall scandal -- the hiring procedures under Mayor Daley.


Collins told U.S. District Judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan he wanted to make Richard Coveliers available for the March trial of Robert Sorich, a Daley loyalist and former unofficial City Hall patronage chief. Sorich, along with others, is accused in a federal indictment of violating city hiring practices.

Der-Yeghiayan agreed to set the sentencing for April

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