Aaron Schock, the former Republican congressman from Peoria, will walk away from years of a public corruption case with no conviction, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Schock resigned in 2015 under a cloud of suspicion surrounding tens of thousands of dollars in mileage reimbursements for his personal vehicle and a gaudy congressional office redecoration.
A 2016 indictment accused Schock of using campaign and government funds improperly for cars, mileage reimbursements, interior decorating, a charter plane flight to a Bears game and sports tickets he resold for profit.
Schock struck a deal with prosecutors in March, which put his case on hold for six months during which he was required to meet certain conditions and remain under court supervision.
That six months ended Wednesday, with U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kennelly ordering the indictment dismissed.
That deal reached in March required Schock to repay $67,956 to his campaign committees and also pay outstanding taxes due from the years 2010 through 2015.
He also admitted, on the record, that he sought reimbursement for mileage without documentation that led to reimbursements “that exceeded the number of miles actually driven” and that he took tickets he’d landed at face value, for events like the World Series and the Super Bowl, and resold them for a profit.
By doing so, he made $42,375 that he did not report on his federal income tax returns for the six years he spent in office.
The agreement and subsequent dismissal of charges marks a rare and stunning victory for Schock. Although he admitted to the above accusations, Schock did not plead guilty to any criminal offenses.
“There’s a difference between mistakes and crimes,” Schock said in March after the agreement was approved.
Contributing: Jon Seidel, Lynn Sweet
