CHICAGO — As voters prepare to cast ballots in the Illinois Democratic primary election on March 17, a federal criminal case involving Illinois State Representative La Shawn K. Ford has resurfaced in political attacks despite the fact that federal prosecutors dropped all felony charges against the West Side lawmaker more than a decade ago. Federal court records and contemporaneous news reports show the case concluded in 2014 when the felony counts were dismissed before trial.

Ford, who has represented the 8th District in the Illinois House of Representatives since 2007, was indicted by a federal grand jury in November 2012 on 17 counts of bank fraud connected to loans involving ShoreBank, a Chicago community development bank that later collapsed during the financial crisis.

The charges were filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in the case of United States v. La Shawn K. Ford, according to federal court records.

At the time, federal prosecutors alleged Ford had provided inaccurate financial information while seeking a line of credit tied to several real estate investments.

WBEZ reported on November 29, 2012, that the indictment accused Ford of misrepresenting financial information in connection with loans tied to ShoreBank in order to obtain a larger line of credit.

Ford denied wrongdoing and said the allegations stemmed from business dealings involving the bank.

The case remained pending for nearly two years before it was scheduled to go to trial in federal court in Chicago in August 2014.

On the day the trial was set to begin, federal prosecutors dropped all 17 felony bank fraud charges.

The Chicago Sun-Times reported on August 4, 2014, that prosecutors dismissed the felony counts as Ford agreed to plead guilty to a single misdemeanor tax offense related to his 2007 federal income tax return.

The Austin Voice reported in its August 6, 2014 edition that federal prosecutors dropped the felony charges after a two-year investigation and that Ford pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor tax charge after the dismissal of the bank fraud counts.

ABC 7 Chicago reported August 4, 2014, that the tax issue involved approximately $3,700 in underpaid taxes.

CBS Chicago reported the same day that Ford was sentenced to six months of probation, ordered to pay a $1,000 fine and perform community service.

Federal court records from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois show that the bank fraud counts listed in the indictment were dismissed as part of the case’s final disposition.

Because those felony charges were dismissed, Ford was not convicted of a felony in the case.

The case drew significant attention at the time because Ford was a sitting state legislator and one of the few elected officials in Illinois to face federal charges related to business dealings with ShoreBank following the bank’s collapse.

A Chicago Crusader story published October 18, 2025 also reported that Ford pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor tax charge and later received documentation from the Internal Revenue Service indicating he had overpaid his taxes.

“In 2014, Ford pled guilty to a single misdemeanor tax charge, admitting he underreported income on his tax returns,” the Crusader reported. “He later received IRS documentation indicating that he had in fact overpaid his taxes, and the agency issued him two refund checks.”

“They said I underpaid my taxes, but later the IRS sent me a check saying I overpaid,” Ford told the Crusader while showing copies of the checks dated December 29 and December 31, 2014. “I got a bad deal, but I came out a better person because now I can represent people who face injustices in our system.”

Ford said that during the time of the investigation he was working on legislation addressing housing discrimination and lending practices.

“At that time, I was fighting against housing discrimination by ZIP code,” Ford recalled in the Crusader interview. “Some banks required home counseling fees only in Black communities, not in the suburbs or on the North Side, and I was fighting that.”

Ford has continued to serve in the Illinois House of Representatives since the case was resolved and remains active in legislative initiatives affecting Chicago’s West Side.

The issue has resurfaced during Ford’s campaign for the Democratic nomination in Illinois’ 7th Congressional District, where several candidates are competing to succeed longtime U.S. Representative Danny K. Davis.

Political observers note that past legal investigations involving public officials often reappear during election campaigns, particularly in competitive races. Legal experts frequently point out that there is an important distinction between an indictment and a conviction. An indictment is a formal accusation filed by prosecutors, while a conviction occurs only after a guilty verdict or plea that results in a criminal judgment.

In Ford’s case, the public record shows that the 17 felony charges filed in 2012 were dismissed in 2014 and the case concluded with a misdemeanor tax plea.

The outcome was widely reported at the time by multiple Chicago media outlets, including WBEZ, the Chicago Sun-Times, ABC 7 Chicago, CBS Chicago and The Austin Voice.

Ford continues to serve in the Illinois General Assembly as the congressional campaign moves forward.