Odelson Endorses Bury for Mayor

A strongly worded letter from well-known government and election attorney Burt Odelson landed in Oak Lawn voters’ mailboxes on Thursday, endorsing candidate Sandra Bury for mayor.

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Odelson is best known for challenging Rahm Emanuel’s residency in the 2011 Chicago mayoral election. His law firm, Odelson and Sterk Ltd., provides legal counsel to more than 20 municipalities and school districts throughout the Chicago area.

In his letter dated April 2, 2013, Odelson discusses his 40-year-plus residency in Oak Lawn. He also speaks of being hired in December 2009 to lead an investigation into the billings and practices of the former village attorneys, Tressler, Soderstrom, Maloney and Preiss.

Odelson’s firm currently does no work for the Village of Oak Lawn. (Read the endorsement letter in its entrity by clicking on the pdf on the right.)

He claims many of his firm’s findings led to the that “the Mayor’s attorney friends’ law firm paid back to the Village” last year.

Odelson also cites the findings in the “Odelson Report” contributing the contents of written and circulated by Dr. Sandra Bury in her mayoral campaign against

Says Odelson:

“I have been asked many times about the contents of ‘$10 Million Too Late’ and whether or not the claims are true. Most of the contents of the document aren’t my words, or Dr. Bury’s words – they are Dave Heilmann’s words.

“In large part because of my findings, I am strongly supporting Dr. Sandra Bury for Mayor of Oak Lawn, and Jane Quinlan to be retained as Village Clerk.”

Odelson said he sent his letter unsolicited and that he paid for it himself. A source close to the Bury campaign said that 12,000 letters were sent. He also endorsed Jane Quinlan for village clerk.

Read up on the Oak Lawn Village Board candidates in Election Central 2013.

Patch asked Odelson how he obtained residents’ addresses for the endorsement letter?

“I mailed to registered voters homes. Mail houses have these lists and they are routinly used in elections. I have nothing to do with the village government and it is absurd and an insult to ask if I hacked into anything, I mean really obnoxious to say that,” Odelson answered in an email. “I love Oak Lawn and wanted to do something to get it back on track and rid the taxpayers of inept leadership.”

He further praised Bury as a highly respected Oak Lawn doctor who is not “on an ego trip for political gain.”

“This is an extremely rare opportunity to elect a caring, smart, successful and all-around good person to lead this fine village,” Odelson said in his email. “I don’t endorse or get involved with campaigns anymore because by business and family keep me very, very busy but this had to be exception.”

READ more ELECTION NEWS:

• VIDEO: Mayoral Candidate Forum Opening Statements

• Live Blog: Oak Lawn Mayoral Candidate Forum