Chicago Mayor’s Office Improperly Blocked Access To Lavish ‘Gift Room’: Inspector General

Chicago’s Inspector General dropped a bombshell report revealing that Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office improperly blocked public access to a special room within City Hall containing gifts to the city – including designer handbags, cufflinks, and a personalized Mont Blanc pen.

A new report from Inspector General Deborah Witzburg’s office concludes that Johnson’s office violated a city ethics policy requiring that any gifts valued at more than $50 and “accepted on behalf of the city” be logged into a book that is made available to the public on the 5th floor of City Hall.

But when two undercover investigators from the IG’s office visited the mayor’s office last June, they were denied access to the log, and instead told to file a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to see it.

Then, when the IG’s office filed a FOIA request, the mayor’s office refused to respond to it on time – only to provide an incomplete spreadsheet of the gifts more than a month after the request was filed.

“That’s certainly concerning to me,” said Witzburg. ” Where there’s anything of value being exchanged, we would absolutely want to know whether those gifts are coming from people looking for influence in some way — whether those are lobbyists, or people doing business with the city.”

“Notably, a response to the FOIA request OIG submitted as a member of the public came only after OIG also issued a compelled document request to the Mayor’s Office seeking the same information,” reads the report.

Some of the 380 gifts listed included Hugo Boss cufflinks; Givenchy, Gucci, and Kate Spade handbags; a personalized Mont Blanc pen; a 2003 U.S. National Soccer Team jersey; size 14 Carrucci men’s shoes; and even whiskey—as being stored in a “Gift Room,” and others in the Mayor’s personal office in City Hall. –CBS News

6/ And here’s what they found in the secret log. Hundreds of luxury gifts, including ⬇️

🚩 Hugo Boss cuff links
🚩 Personalized Mont Blanc pen
🚩 Gucci Tote bag and crossbody bag
🚩 Givenchy Bag
🚩 Kate Spade Red Purse
🚩 Carrucci Size 14 Burgundy Men’s Shoes

Notably absent… pic.twitter.com/rBdgga3jUg

— Austin Berg (@Austin__Berg) January 29, 2025

Next, the IG’s office showed up in person unannounced to see the gift log, only to be told by Johnson’s staffers that they were told by the city’s Law Department that the IG must make an appointment to access the gift room. According to the report, the city’s municipal code requires all city employees to cooperate with IG investigations, including making any records available “as soon as practicable.”

And after speaking with the Law Department, the IG’s office said in the report that they were told they “would not be granted access to the Gift Room” to conduct a full inspection.

3/ Instead, under an “unwritten arrangement” between the Board of Ethics and the Mayor’s Office that has been in place since 1989, the mayor can completely disregard the law. Under this arrangement, the mayor’s office simply makes a publicly available log book of the gifts they… pic.twitter.com/Y6CNRbd9rb

— Austin Berg (@Austin__Berg) January 29, 2025

“Is it possible that there are a bunch of Gucci handbags neatly on a shelf in a gift room at City Hall, and no one’s using them, and nothing has gone wrong, and everything’s fine? Yes, that is possible,” said Witzburg. “But we’re not in a position for a lot of benefit of the doubt here.”

Johnson Defiant

In response the report, the Mayor’s office argued that the city’s municipal code and ethics ordinance don’t require them to make the gift room available for unannounced inspections.

“Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Mayor’s Office remains fully committed to ensuring that gifts are available for inspection through a properly scheduled appointment at the earliest practicable time,” said mayoral chief of staff Cristina Pacione-Zayas in response to the inspector general’s report. “This administration has and will continue to comply with all guidance from the Board of Ethics  … Our duty to do so is without objection.”

“I’ve never even seen this room that they’re talking about,” said Johnson. “I don’t mean to make light of, you know, this so-called investigation, but quite frankly, it bears very little. If people want a tour of this room, I’ll sign up, because I’ve never been to it myself.”