William Hogan Jr. in a 1996 file photo. (Nancy Stone/Tribune)

By Ameet Sachdev |
William Hogan Jr., once Chicago’s most powerful Teamster, has reached a
settlement with federal prosecutors in New York to resolve criminal
contempt charges against him.

In 2007, Hogan was charged with contempt for, effectively, refusing to
stop associating with members of the union, from which he was expelled in 2002.
The charge was later amended to include an alleged violation arising
from Hogan’s 2007 employment by a business employing Teamster members.

A New York federal judge approved the settlement Thursday. The deal is called a deferred prosecution, meaning the U.S. attorney’s office in New York will dismiss charges against Hogan in a year if he complies with all terms of the agreement. This calls for him to abide by the terms of his 2003 expulsion, in which he was barred from “knowingly associating” with Teamster members.

“Bill doesn’t have it within his power to change that,” said his attorney Alan Kaufman. “He’s not happy with the continuation of that restriction.”

Hogan also agreed to pay $10,000 to the Teamsters for costs related to the investigation into his dealings with union officials after his ouster.

Hogan, 68, was kicked out of the union for taking part in a scheme to shift Teamsters’ jobs in Las Vegas to a non-union employer where his brother was an official.

Hogan had led Local 714 for years, where he exerted much control over film production and trade shows in Chicago. Under Hogan, the local grew to include public employees, from police officers to Cook County employees.

The local was founded in the Great Depression by his father, William Hogan Sr. After Hogan was banned in 2002, his son, Robert, took over. But in 2008, Teamsters officials removed the Hogan family from leadership posts.

After his expulsion, Hogan still loomed large over the local, according to a government-sanctioned watchdog. The group ousted three high-level officials for associating with Hogan.

The government later charged Hogan with contempt for allowing himself to maintain relationships with Teamster officials.