Jerome Prince
In recently filed federal court documents, former Gary Mayor Jerome Prince has acknowledged the misuse of campaign funds during his 2019 mayoral campaign to finance a personal real estate transaction. Prince, who served as mayor from 2020 to 2023, reached a plea agreement with federal prosecutors in Hammond, Indiana, admitting that he diverted $26,750 from his campaign contributions to purchase a residence.
According to the agreement, Prince pled guilty to wire fraud in connection with the case. If the plea deal is approved by a federal judge, Prince could avoid a prison sentence. The agreement details that, as the sole authorized signatory of the Committee to Elect Jerome Prince for Mayor, Prince had unrestricted access to campaign funds collected from various donors, including individuals and businesses.
Just before his election victory on November 5, 2019, Prince misled contributors by indicating that their donations would fund his campaign. Instead, in October 2019, Prince withdrew $7,000 from the committee’s account, later using $5,000 of it as part of the initial payment on his home. He failed to report this withdrawal in mandatory expenditure filings. Within days, he also issued a $19,750 check from the campaign’s account, which further facilitated the purchase of the property. At the time of the alleged misconduct, Prince was concluding his term as Lake County Assessor. He admitted in court that he was well aware of Indiana’s campaign finance regulations, which prohibit the use of campaign funds for personal expenses. Despite this knowledge, he proceeded with the transactions, disguising the true purpose of the campaign withdrawals.
The former mayor’s case now awaits the court’s decision on his plea agreement, which could potentially allow him to avoid incarceration if accepted.