Peter M. Hoffman was an American politician who served as

Cook County Sheriff The Cook County Sheriff is the sheriff of Cook County, Illinois, heading the Cook County Sheriff's Office. Office description Terms are currently four-years in length. Officeholders Election results , - , colspan=21 style="text-align:cent ...

Cook County Coroner The Cook County Medical Examiner is the coroner of Cook County, Illinois. Occupants are credential medical examiners, appointed by President of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, subject t ...

, and as a member of the

Cook County Board of Commissioners The Cook County Board of Commissioners is a legislative body made up of 17 commissioners who are elected by district, and a president who is elected county-wide, all for four-year terms. Cook County, Illinois, Cook County, which includes the City ...

. His political career ended after a

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense that is undertaken by a person or an organization that is entrusted in a position of authority to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's gain. Corruption may involve activities ...

scandal arose during his term as Cook County Sheriff. He was a member of the Republican Party.

Early life

Hoffman was born in

Des Plaines Des Plaines () is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 60,675. The city is a suburb of Chicago and is located just north of O'Hare International Airport. It is situated on and is named after t ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, where he would continue to live during his adulthood.

Career

Hoffman worked as a

grocer A grocery store (American English, AE), grocery shop or grocer's shop (British English, BE) or simply grocery is a retail store that primarily retails a general range of food Product (business), products, which may be Fresh food, fresh or Food p ...

and a railroad clerk. He was the chief clerk of the

Chicago and North Western Railway The Chicago and North Western was a Railroad classes#Class I, Class I railroad in the Midwestern United States. It was also known as the "North Western". The railroad operated more than of track at the turn of the 20th century, and over of t ...

. He served as president of the Village of Desplaines Board of Trustees.

Cook County Commissioner

Elected in 1898, and reelected in both 1900 and 1902, Hoffman served as a Republican member of the

, elected from suburban Cook County.

Cook County Coroner

In 1904, Hoffman was elected

as a Republican, and was reelected in 1908, 1912, 1916, and 1920. As coroner, he established the county's first "chemical laboratory", and appointed experienced

pathologists A list of people notable in the field of pathology. A * John Abercrombie, Scottish physician, neuropathologist and philosopher. * Maude Abbott (1869–1940), Canadian pathologist, one of the earliest women graduated in medicine, expert in c ...

and

chemists A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a graduated scientist trained in the study of chemistry, or an officially enrolled student in the field. Chemists study the composition of ...

. He was aggressive at prosecuting certain types of

homicide Homicide is an act in which a person causes the death of another person. A homicide requires only a Volition (psychology), volitional act, or an omission, that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from Accident, accidenta ...

, centering his political image on fighting to guard the innocent. Hoffman would even resort to stacking

inquest An inquest is a judicial inquiry in common law jurisdictions, particularly one held to determine the cause of a person's death. Conducted by a judge, jury, or government official, an inquest may or may not require an autopsy carried out by a cor ...

juries A jury is a sworn body of people (jurors) convened to hear evidence, make findings of fact, and render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Most trial juries are " petit juries", an ...

in order to increase the likelihood of particular suspects being charged with homicide. In the aftermath of the Eastland disaster, Hoffman convened a jury within hours to help to determine accountability for the deaths. He also secured the Second Regiment Armory to use a central

morgue A morgue or mortuary (in a hospital or elsewhere) is a place used for the storage of human corpses awaiting identification (ID), removal for autopsy, respectful burial, cremation or other methods of disposal. In modern times, corpses have cu ...

for the victims of the disaster. He resigned the office of Cook County coroner in 1922 to assume the position of

Cook County sheriff The Cook County Sheriff is the sheriff of Cook County, Illinois, heading the Cook County Sheriff's Office. Office description Terms are currently four-years in length. Officeholders Election results , - , colspan=21 style="text-align:cent ...

Cook County Sheriff

In 1922, Hoffman was elected Cook County sheriff, having run on a "reform" platform. He pledged to "clean up" the administration of the

Cook County Jail The Cook County Jail, located on in South Lawndale, Chicago, Illinois, is operated by the Sheriff of Cook County. It is sometimes referred to as ''California'' or ''Hotel California'', as its address is on California Avenue. A city jail has e ...

. Hoffman retained Wesley Westbrook as the warden of Cook County Jail. Westbrook had been hired by Hoffman's predecessor,

Charles W. Peters Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was ...

. A major scandal arose when it came out that Hoffman had been giving special privileged to

Valley Gang The Valley Gang was an Irish-American street gang in Chicago, Illinois during the early 20th century, which ultimately made the transition to organized crime and became a de facto extension of the Chicago Outfit under Al Capone. Formed in the 18 ...

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

gangsters A gangster (informally gangsta) is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from '' mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level ...

Terry Druggan and Frankie Lake while they were prisoners at Cook County Jail. Relating to this, Hoffman and his jail warden, Westbrook, were charged with

contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the co ...

by James H. Wilkerson, and Hoffman spent 30 days in jail and was fined $2,500 while Westbrook spent four months in jail. After several appeals attempts failed, Hoffman spent prison time while in office as Sheriff. In 1925, after the scandal involving the favoritism to mobsters in the Cook County Jail had already broke, Hoffman appointed George H. Weideling as the new warden of the jail. Weideling would resign after eight months after Judge John P. McGoorty, in his investigation of the jail's conditions, opined that, despite Weideling being honest, there was a "deplorable lack of morale and a breakdown of discipline in the institution". Hoffman remained in office after his term would have normally expired in early December 1926 due to the fact that his elected successor, Patrick J. Carr, died before he could take office (the law stated that a sheriff served until his successor qualified to take office). Hoffman would resign in late December 1926, effective on December 26.

Post-political career

Hoffman worked on the construction service of the

Forest Preserve District of Cook County The Forest Preserve District of Cook County is a governmental commission in Cook County, Illinois, that owns and manages land containing forest, prairie, wetland, streams, and lakes. These land holdings are primarily managed as undeveloped nat ...

, a job he left in 1932. Before retiring in his later years, he ran an

automobile A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, peopl ...

sales agency.

Death

Hoffman died July 30, 1948, at

Saint Francis Hospital of Evanston Saint Francis Hospital is a teaching hospital in Evanston, Illinois, a northern suburb of Chicago. Its facilities include a Level 1 Trauma and Heart Center, and it has 270 general Acute care beds. History Saint Francis Hospital of Evanston w ...

in Evanston, Illinois. at the age of 85

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoffman, Peter M. Members of the Cook County Board of Commissioners Cook County Coroners Sheriffs of Cook County, Illinois Illinois Republicans People from Des Plaines, Illinois 1948 deaths Year of birth missing