Giving up aren’t words that fit into the vocabulary of Carmelita Earls, who is a community leader in the 28th Ward of Chicago’s West side. With determination and diligence, Earls has decided to take her case to the Illinois Supreme Court, and doesn’t plan on backing down from a case in which she feels has defamed her reputation. Earls was a candidate running for the 28th Wards Alderman seat and was pulled from the ballot by Circuit Court Judge Aurelia Pucinski, on February the 18th, 2011 just 4 days before the early vote. This surprise arrived after several court dates of fighting to stay in the race based on accusations of Earls having more then one home under tax exemption status and owing the city money due to this claim. But the accusations don’t end there, because according to Earls she has been charged unjustly for much more than just owing the city money. Earls feels that she didn’t break any laws which could have excluded her candidacy in the Aldermanic race and this is what the fight is all about. It has been an uphill battle between current Alderman Jason Ervin and Camelita Earls during the Aldermanic race and the battle still holds precedence according to Earls because she feels that this battle is not about her, but it is about cleaning up “Dirty Politics.” Earls says “I and everyone else in my Ward are tired of the same old business as usual and I am here to put and end to political games.”
Earls claims that she has been to court on a number of occasions due to the political games that Ervin’s team have put together and has spent well over $89,000 to prove her innocence. She says “I was charge with 22 criminal offenses, and accused of not being an American citizen, I’ve been given tickets in front of my own door with claims of not having a city sticker, and while in the supermarket an elderly women accused me of being the women who has stolen money from the city, this is defamation.”
Earls promises that she will prove to be innocent and it all begins with a visit to the Department of Revenue on the 17th of November 2010. On this very day, Earls went to the department of Revenue in order for them to do a report on her to make sure that she did not owe the city of Chicago any money because, in order become apart of the Aldermanic race, one is not able to have any owed debt to the city of Chicago. After having that report ran, it was to Earls understanding that she did not owe the city of Chicago anything, her name was clear based on a letter that she received from the Department of Revenue. However, on December 13, 2010 she received a letter from the Tax Assessors office dated December 6, 2010 saying that she owed the city $4,500. On December 14, 2010 Earls husband went to the Tax Assessors office with the letter in order to pay the amount which was indicated in the letter. However Earls wants to make clear that she never received an actual bill from the Tax Assessors office/the Department of Revenue, only the letter that was written to her dated December 6, 2010. Earls is disappointed at the fact that the itemization that were sent to her by way of the Tax Assessors office were calculated by her opponent/defendant in a legal battle Jason Ervin, who Earls says, claims to be a CPA. Earls says “I have transcripts with Ervin lying under oath saying that he is a CPA, and that the numbers calculated are those in which he calculated .” Earls adds, “As of November 17, 2010 I owed the city nothing, this is why I have won all of my court cases thus far, this is just something that Ed Smith has put together in order to save the Aldermanic seat.” Ed Smith is prior Alderman and current Committeeman in the 28th Ward who has mentored Ervin’s political career. Earls reveals, “This is the reason why I await the Supreme Courts ruling, I want them to know that this is something that Ed Smith has put together in order to save the Alderman seat for Jason Ervin.”
Earls is $89,000 in this battle and has taken out loans in order to take this case to the Supreme Court and is looking for the support of her fellow constituents in order to clean up what she believes is “Dirty Politics.” Earls says that she will not turn her back on this one, “I will go toe to toe with Ed Smith, and Jason Ervin, in order to clean up my Ward.”
If you are looking to help Carmelita Earls in her fight to to clean up the 28th Ward log on to
www.change28.org Camerlita Earls is asking that 10,000 people in her Ward donate to her cause. Her request is that working constituents donate $28 and non-working constituents donate $2. Contact Carmelita Earls to find out more information about her events at Wallace’s Catfish Corner and her Unity prayer meetings throughout the 28th Ward to help heal the community.
Posted By: Talibah Bakhit
Saturday, June 25th 2011 at 4:13PM
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