The Corruption Scandal You Probably Never Heard of

In Cleveland, it was called "one of the biggest local political-machine corruption cases in recent U.S. history." The indictment of Jimmy Dimora, according to one headline, "caps the crumbling of his classic Democratic political machine." (Tony Brown, reporter) The case is still ongoing three years after the FBI raided Dimora's home. And today, a jury found Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Steven Terry guilty of three out of five counts of mail fraud. He is the second judge waiting to be sentenced.

The profiles index assembled by the Cleveland Plain Dealer runs seven pages.

You won't, however, find a single story in the New York Times or the Washington Post or the Los Angeles Times about the widespread corruption that has netted 50 so far and involves far more.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer has Overviews of the Investigation a Year Later, Two Years later and a timeline for the career of Jimmy Dimora who rose from "from the obscurity of a suburban wastewater treatment plant to become one of the highest profile politicians in Cuyahoga County."
Research by reporter James McCarty.

County in Crisis is the Plain Dealer collection site for stories.

Some convictions include,
County Auditor Frank Russo pleads guilty. Sentenced to 21 years in prison.
"Frank Russo -- once the gregarious front man of the local Democratic Party ...

Joseph Gallucci- admitted to getting a $70,000 job and an additional $10,000 in return for entering the 2006 Cuyahoga County auditor's race as a Republican challenger to incumbent Frank Russo. Gallucci got in the race and then withdrew after the deadline for the Republicans to replace him on the ballot -- clearing the way for Russo to coast back into office, according to Gallucci's plea.
Story: Feds say Frank Russo rigged his 2006 re-election, paying for fake opponent

Demoris' trial has been delayed.

The newspaper is owned by the S.I. Newhouse's newspaper chain.