Former Heights Mayor Chuck Panici's Criminal Trial Revisited in New Book

Former mayor of Chicago Heights Charles "Chuck" Panici may be the most controversial figure in the city's history.

He's been praised for the economic state of the city during his 16 years in office and chastised for his 1993 conviction for taking more than $250,000 in bribes. The trial of Panici, as well as Heights commissioners John Gliottoni Jr., and Louise Marshall, marks one of the darker periods in Chicago Heights history, and a new book will revisit that period.

The book, titled Prosecutors Gone Wild: The Inside Story of the Trial of Chuck Panici, John Gliottoni, and Louise Marshall, will be released as an e-book on Friday, Oct. 26.

The author, Michael Volpe, has blogged about Chicago Heights and Panici in the past. 

"In and around Chicago Heights, there are plenty of opinions about this trial," Volpe said in an email. "No one making those opinions has all the available facts. Many facts involved with this trial weren't revealed to the jury and thus the public. This book intends to present the rest of the story, so people can form their opinions on the basis of all the available facts."

In the book, Volpe included a quote from Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, which Volpe feels best explains the intent behind releasing the book:

No one has the right to have an opinion on any subject unless he or she has arrived at that opinion by a process of reasoning based on all the available facts connected with that subject. Despite this fact, however, nearly everyone has opinions on nearly every subject, whether they are familiar with these subjects or have any facts connected with them or not.

Look for an extended excerpt from the book this Friday on Chicago Heights Patch.

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