Jubeh on the stand

07/10/2009 5:47 PM

By Micah Maidenberg
Editor

2 Comments - Add Your Comment

Hanah Jubeh was the last witness called by Congress Hotel attorneys on July 8 in the trial stemming out of the hotel’s suit against 2nd Ward Alderman Robert Fioretti (background on the suit can be found here).
Jubeh was the manager of Fioretti’s successful 2007 aldermanic campaign victory and remains one of his advisers.
While Jubeh was on the stand and under oath, hotel lawyer Peter Andjelkovich repeatedly compared her testimony against similar questions hotel lawyers asked her during a deposition she gave Jan. 25, 2008.
At least seven times, Andjelkovich asked Jubeh a question then refer back to the deposition. He made it a point of asking her - each time - to reaffirm that her answers in the deposition and in court July 8 and July 9 were true.
Andjelkovich would ask Jubeh (and other witnesses as well; only the date would change) the following four questions before referring back to the deposition transcript:

Do you recall the deposition you gave on Jan. 25, 2008?
Do you recall the court reporter swearing you in?
Did you tell the truth that day?
Are you telling the truth today?

Jubeh would answer affirmatively:

Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes

For example, there was this exchange about aldermanic prerogative, with Andjelkovich’s questions in bold. The questions and answers are paraphrased:

Are you familiar with the term aldermanic privilege?
Yes.
Do you have an understanding of what the term means?
Not specifically.
When you worked w/the 2nd Ward or with Ald. Pope did you ever know of a developer obtain approval of something like the Congress' rooftop expansion without aldermanic approval?
No.
As far as you understand the alderman's signature is required?
Yes.
Required by whom?
The city.
How do you know?
By common knowledge.
...
When you say the alderman's signature is required, can you explain that?
Usually the alderman has to sign off. There are projects that move forward without a signature.
If an alderman did not sign off on a sidewalk cafe or rooftop expansion, what would happen?
I wouldn't know. Some projects move forward.
Do you recall the deposition you gave on Jan. 25, 2008?
Yes.
Do you recall the court reporter swearing you in?
Yes.
Did you tell the truth that day?
Yes.
Are you telling the truth today?
Yes.
Do you recall me asking the following questions and you giving the following answers in the deposition: A signature is required? Usually/generally it has to be signed. If not? Then it doesn't move forward. And the other aldermen won't support it? Yes. That's aldermanic privilege? Yes.

Jubeh answered yes to the question, and then Andjelkovich kept pressing on aldermanic prerogative.

When did you first become aware of aldermanic prerogative?
I don't use that term.
What do you call it?
I don't call it anything.
Do you recall the deposition you gave on Jan. 25, 2008?
Yes.
Do you recall the court reporter swearing you in?
Yes.
Did you tell the truth that day?
Yes.
Are you telling the truth today?
Yes.

Andjelkovich then referred to another page in the deposition where Jubeh answered a question about when she first become aware of aldermanic prerogative like this: "When I first started with the city, that's kind of what I did."
In the cross examination, Jubeh's lawyer Andrew Worseck went back to the city's approval process to try to show that Jubeh couldn't know the outcome of every permit filed with the city.
Below, Worseck's questions are in bold. Both are paraphrased:

When you worked for Ald. Pope, do you recall how many applications for city approval came through his office?
Quite a few.
How many came through the office while you were there.
Several thousand.
It is true that there were thousands of applications field across the city during your time with Ald. Pope?
Yes.
Do you have any reason to believe that Ald. Pope's office was different from other aldermen?
No.

Worseck then asked about various city bodies and departments that issue permits or approvals - City Council, the Plan Commission, the Building Department.

Each of these entities issue permits over the areas they have jurisdiction over?
Yes.
There are an array of rules on approving those?
Yes.
And they're complex.
Yes.
And you don't know the outcome of every application filed with the city during your time with Ald. Pope?
Correct.
You don't know the process or the outcome of all?
Correct.
You don't know when a local alderman opposed a permit that was nonetheless approved by a city body?
Yes.
You stopped work for Pope in 2005?
Yes.
Before the Congress filed any application mentioned in this lawsuit?
Yes.
You were not a city employee when the Congress was applying?
Yes.




2 Comments - Add Your Comment



By the truth is out there from in the aldermanic prereogative political wildernes
Posted: 07/13/2009 11:23 AM

Joe Schmo off the street knows all bout aldermanic corruption (I mean, aldermanic prerogative), so how could a professional political operative like Jubeh not know this. Makes no sense. Keep grilling her.


By claudea from united center
Posted: 07/10/2009 8:06 PM

Thank you Micah for your reporting on this case. It is really interesting and helping me learn about Chicago politics.