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Former Mayor Of Richardson, Texas And Husband Convicted Of Public Corruption

Both were sentenced to six years in federal prison
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Photo: Bigflick | Shutterstock

Laura Jordan, also known as Laura Maczka, 57, and her land developer husband Mark Jordan, 55, were convicted of public corruption in the Eastern District of Texas. Residents of Plano, both were sentenced to six years in federal prison. 

“Citizens should be able to trust that their elected representatives honestly conduct themselves in a manner that solely benefits the community,” said U.S. Attorney Brit Featherston in an official statement. “When the greed of personal gain and benefit results from official actions taken on the pretense of altruistic motives, then the integrity of the whole process is corrupted. Jordan and Maczka have now been convicted by a jury of their peers and their punishment should reflect some measure of repair of that trust by the citizens of Richardson, Texas.”

Laura Maczka was the mayor of Richardson between 2013 and 2015. According to evidence submitted in court, Maczka conspired with land developer Jordan, whom she later married, in a bribery scheme by voting for zoning changes that led to the building of over 1,000 new apartments in Richardson and the surrounding areas. 

The United States Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of Texas detailed what Maczka received from Jordan:

In exchange, Jordan paid Maczka over $18,000 in cash, an additional $40,000 by check, and paid for over $24,000 in renovations to Maczka’s home. Jordan also paid for luxury hotel stays and airfare upgrades for Maczka and provided Maczka lucrative employment at one of Jordan’s companies. According to court testimony, Maczka and Jordan failed to disclose to the public that they had coordinated to affect the zoning changes Jordan wanted and that Jordan had provided a stream of benefits to Maczka.

A federal grand jury indicted both Maczka and Jordan May 10, 2018. The former mayor married Jordan in 2017, after the federal investigation had begun.