Bloom v. Municipal Employees' Annuity & Benefit Fund

Chicago aldermen are among the wide variety of Illinois municipal employees subject to state statutory provisions that disqualify them from pension benefit eligibility if they are convicted of a felony relating to, arising out of or connected with their employment. Plaintiff Lawrence S. Bloom, a former Chicago alderman, pleaded guilty to the charge of filing a false federal tax return, a felony. Since, in the course of the negotiation and signing of his plea agreement, Bloom admitted that some of the funds falsely categorized on his return were amounts paid to him in exchange for his improper…