History

1920s | 1950s | 1960s | 1970s | 1980s-1990s | 2000-2004 | 2004-Present

The 1970's

When J. Terrence Brunner joined the BGA in 1971, the organization had earned a national reputation for its powerful investigations and had helped its media partners to win two Pulitzer Prizes along with countless other journalism awards. Soon after Brunner's arrival, the BGA exposed election corruption in Mayer Daley's political machine, winning the Chicago Tribune another Pulitzer and causing Daley to accuse the BGA of being "an arm of the Republican Party."

Under Brunner's guidance, the BGA again expanded its focus and raised its profile, partnering with local and national television media to create even more massive pressure for reform. The BGA continued its work with the Chicago Tribune, Sun-Times, Daily News, but it began to work with national newsmagazines like CBS' 60 Minutes and ABC News 20/20.

In 1977, the BGA worked with CBS 60 Minutes and the Chicago Sun-Times to produce the landmark Mirage Tavern investigation. The plan was more audacious than anything the group had tried before. The BGA and the Sun-Times bought a run-down tavern in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood and put cameras in the wall to record what became a parade of bribe-seeking inspectors and employees. The incendiary investigation caused a national sensation, a spate of firings and new reforms.

In 1979 the BGA opened offices in Washington, D.C. and Springfield, Illinois to expose national corruption. Though the program was extremely successful, producing more than 20 hard-hitting investigations in just five years, the expense of the program was draining the BGA. The D.C. office was closed in 1984.

In addition to expanding the organization's reach and profile, Brunner expanded the BGA's capacity to push for reform. He developed a top-flight legal program, which put a new role of teeth in the BGA's investigative findings, and a nationally recognized investigative internship program, which has trained literally hundreds of future lawyers, journalists and civic activists.

The 1980's to 1990's

In the 1980's and 1990's the BGA continued to produce an astounding number of local and national news stories. The BGA exposed fraud in the Chicago Public Schools, which led to a reform of the whole school system; lax security at O'Hare International Airport, which led to heightened security measures; investigations into local police departments led to reforms resulting in the formation of multi-jurisdictional task-forces in Illinois.

In 1999, the BGA filed a lawsuit against George Ryan seeking to hold him accountable for the massive corruption that occurred during his tenure as Secretary of State. Ryan was eventually indicted by the U.S. Attorney and significant ethics reforms were enacted by the state in response to Ryan's misdeeds.

2000 to 2004

In the new millennium, the BGA exposed the public to a network of insiders who were obtaining concession contracts at O'Hare. Most notable was Oscar D'Angelo, a longtime Daley friend and debarred attorney who worked as an unregistered lobbyist to broker the deals. As a result, the city revamped Chicago's lobbyist ordinance to tighten its lobbyist registration requirements.

After nearly 30 years as Executive Director, Brunner retired and former BGA general counsel Terrance Norton took the helm. Under Norton's watch, the BGA expanded its ongoing investigations into George Ryan's fundraising practices; released a comprehensive nursing home guide as well as the BGA Integrity Index ®, the nation's first comprehensive analysis and ranking of each of the 50 states, government transparency and accountability laws. The Index, published in the fall of 2002, received nationwide coverage and spurred many states to improve their laws.

The BGA also filed a lawsuit contesting the placement of a riverboat casino in the village of Rosemont. The lawsuit contends the law that allowed the defunct East Dubuque riverboat to move to the Chicago suburb was unconstitutional special legislation designed to benefit only that license. The case went to the Illinois Supreme Court, the court updated the law, but the Attorney General is seeking to revoke the license.

In 2003 Sue Walker replaced Norton as Executive Director in an interim capacity, sustaining the BGA's mission and "keeping the doors open" during a time in which many non-profit organizations faced overwhelming fundraising challenges. The BGA weathered the transition and, in 2004, former BGA staff attorney Jay Stewart became the new Executive Director.