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THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2009
BROCTON LOCKWOOD Retired judge now lives a calm, simple life in Saline County BY SCOTT FITZGERALD
‘Judge Lockwood’s account of Greylord not only informs us about public corruption, it inspires us as well. The public owes Judge Lockwood a debt of gratitute that cannot easily be repaid.’
THE SOUTHERN
Former Williamson County Judge Brocton Lockwood, who gained notoriety as a whistleblower to brazen judicial corruption in Chicago more than 30 years earlier, isn’t one to seek exposure today. He doesn’t journey to the Southern Illinois University Carbondale School of Law to guest lecture. He’s not writing books or blogging for that matter. He enjoys the quiet rural life on his farm in Saline County and visits from friends and family members. When judicial and political corruption surface, however, such as the recent downfall and indictments against former Gov. Rod Blagojevich in 2008, journalists come calling. They know what Lockwood did in setting a precedent against corruption. And his words echo true today as his actions did back then. “People involved with illegal cases have more money than they know what to do with. They don’t know how to get rid of it,” he said about payoffs to people with authority and other sleazy practices. Lockwood, now in his mid-60s, arrived in Chicago in 1978 and reported to housing court, fulfilling the obligation of all Southern Illinois judges to serve six weeks each year to reduce the backlog in the Cook County system. According to “Operation Greylord: Brocton Lockwood’s Story,” by
PETER M. MANIKAS THE SOUTHERN FILE PHOTO
Judge William A. Lewis (from left), Brocton Lockwood and Robert Howerton listen during a news conference in 1983.
Lockwood with Harlan H. Mendenhall, published by Southern Illinois University Press in 1989, the young judge was immediately shown what hustle was in the judicial system. “My first day in housing court, I was baffled by what went on. We handled more than 250 cases in an hour and a half — an average of 22 seconds per case,” he wrote. He soon learned hustle was more than something associated with a time element as he talked recently about Chicago, where he said, “Something is always done for a price.” Soon after being reassigned to hear traffic court cases, Lockwood approached the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office with the need to unload what he was seeing — visible signs of bribery in the open. He saw judicial decisions bought and sold like commodity futures, according to his book. Upon his contact with the county state’s attorney’s office, he
learned the U.S. Attorney’s office was already working with the office on an investigation into the system. He was asked to help by those authorities and consented. It was a dangerous assignment, as Lockwood was wired to help gain evidence. He wore tape recorders in his cowboy boots and microphones under his judicial robes. He helped the FBI get its evidence to begin indictments, and eventual federal convictions, of more than 90 people, including judges, lawyers, police officers, deputy sheriffs, deputy clerks and a court receiver. Lockwood helped authorities over an approximate three-year period. In addition to fearing for his family’s and his own safety, he didn’t exactly have the greatest of relationships with the people he assisted. There were times he felt clearly alone, as he wrote of driving home one weekend after completing another week of
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IN FOREWORD OF ‘OPERATION GREYLORD: BROCKTON LOCKWOOD’S STORY’
harrowing work. “On my way home that weekend I felt angry and isolated. No one in the Washington FBI hierarchy seemed to give a damn about the help I was giving them. There was no one I could trust anymore,” he wrote. Lockwood confided in a few friends in Southern Illinois, including a friend with the Carbondale Police Department, who was the only person with access to the judge’s notes during the probe. Eventually, Lockwood began to see the tide turn and authorities began their numerous convictions. He returned home In an earlier article by The Southern Illinoisan, Lockwood said he was grateful to return in one piece. “I’m elated I got out of the thing and didn’t get killed,” he said with a chuckle. He doesn’t mind playing armchair quarterback today at events that continue to unfold in Chicago.
STEPHEN RICKERL / FOR THE SOUTHERN
Retired Judge Brocton Lockwood poses for a portrait at his home in Saline County.
Lockwood still sees the brazen attitudes and the hustle he assisted in getting earlier convictions, in stories such as former Gov. Rod Blagojevich scheming to auction off President-elect Barack Obama’s open Senate seat in 2008. “It’s a tradition in Chicago. He (Blagojevich) played the game,” Lockwood said, noting the former governor’s reaction to launch a mass public appeals campaign shortly after his indictments were announced by prosecutor Pat Fitzgerald is par for the course. “First you have denial. And then you attack the person. You’ve got to do this to keep your followers in line,” Lockwood said. He foresees the Blagojevich strategy backfiring, however. “I wouldn’t challenge Fitzgerald at this stage of his career. He (Fitzgerald) is
not going to be impressed. He (Fitzgerald) maintains he doesn’t mess around,” Lockwood said. Whatever happens in the future of Illinois politics is anyone’s guess. Lockwood did justice a great service with Operation Greylord, and his legendary actions are best described in his book’s foreword, written by Peter M. Manikas, who was executive director of the Special Commission on the Administration of Justice in Cook County. “He (Lockwood) had the courage and conviction to come forward, but the price he paid has been high. Judge Lockwood’s account of Greylord not only informs us about public corruption, it inspires us as well. The public owes Judge Lockwood a debt of gratitude that cannot easily be repaid.” scott.fitzgerald@thesouthern.com 618-351-5076