Cook Co. official shows support for Rezko

A high-level administrator in the Cook County Board president's office stopped by the Antoin "Tony" Rezko trial Thursday, sitting with Rezko's family and nodding in greeting to Rezko.

Bruce Washington, the county's director of capital planning and policy, declined to talk to reporters about his appearance but did say he was not on county time.

"No, of course not," said Washington.

According to star witness Stuart Levine, Rezko once aided Levine in trying to get a contract with county government for a dental insurance client of Levine's, CompDent. Levine also testified that he had gotten CompDent business with the Chicago Board of Education after passing a bribe along to an unnamed party at the board.

In trying to secure the county business, Levine testified, he approached Rezko and told him about how well CompDent paid and indicated he would be willing to split any fees he earned with Rezko. Levine did not testify whether Rezko agreed to accept any fees, but Rezko indicated he would help Levine by calling the godson of then-board President John H. Stroger, Orlando Jones, and putting him "in charge" of the request.

Levine testified that CompDent had a proposal pending for a county contract but then withdrew it when the FBI confronted Levine in 2004 about his many schemes to defraud the government. Levine later pleaded guilty.

Washington arrived Thursday at the trial at 11:11 a.m. and sat next to Rezko's wife, Rita, herself a county employee, separated by just one person, an unidentified woman with whom Washington left just after the trial broke for lunch at 12:30 p.m. Before leaving, Washington nodded at Rezko in greeting and shook hands with Rezko's lawyer, William Ziegelmueller. He then retrieved his coat from a witness room reserved for Rezko's family and friends.

Upon reaching the lobby and seeing news cameras trained on him, Washington turned around and tried to leave via exits away from cameras. Discovering those exits are now closed due to security barriers at the Dirksen Federal Building, Washington turned around and walked past the cameras.

Ibis Antongiorgi, spokeswoman for Cook County Board President Todd Stroger, refused to say if the president was concerned at the appearance of a cabinet member attending Rezko's trial.

"He (Washington) just decided to sit in for a few minutes," said Antongiorgi. "It's his personal day off."