Jury deliberates in bribery trial of politically connected businessman

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Good afternoon, Chicago.

A federal jury began deliberating today the fate of a politically connected Chicago businessman accused of corrupting the political process by attempting to pay off two sitting state legislators to pass a bill beneficial to his sweepstakes gaming company.

James T. Weiss, 44, who is the son-in-law of former Cook County Democratic boss Joseph Berrios, is charged in a superseding indictment filed in October 2020 with bribery, wire fraud, mail fraud and lying to the FBI. He has pleaded not guilty.

The trial has given jurors — and the public — a glimpse into the largely uncharted world of sweepstakes machines, sometimes called “gray machines,” which allow customers to put in money, receive a coupon to redeem for merchandise online and then play electronic games like slot machines. Check out evidence seen and heard by the jury.

Here’s what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit chicagotribune.com/breaking and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices.

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