{"id":12336,"date":"2025-06-16T07:07:24","date_gmt":"2025-06-16T12:07:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/?p=12336"},"modified":"2025-06-16T07:25:44","modified_gmt":"2025-06-16T12:25:44","slug":"madigan-sentenced-to-prison","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/local-news\/12336-madigan-sentenced-to-prison\/","title":{"rendered":"Madigan Sentenced to Prison"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"image_print\"Print<\/span><\/a><\/div>

By HANNAH MEISEL <\/span>
\n<\/span>Capitol News Illinois <\/span>
\n<\/span>hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

CHICAGO \u2014 The number of years former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan spent in Springfield has often been used as shorthand to explain his outsized impact on state government and politics. His political career spanned 50 years in the General Assembly, 23 years chairing the Democratic Party of Illinois, and 36 years as House speaker \u2014 the longest tenure of any state or federal legislative leader in U.S. history.<\/span><\/p>\n

But on Friday, a new term was added to the former speaker\u2019s list of legacy-defining terms when U.S. District Judge John Blakey sentenced Madigan to 90 months, or 7 \u00bd years, in federal prison.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The sentence, which also includes three years\u2019 probation after his prison term and a $2.5 million fine, follows a jury\u2019s split verdict in February. After a marathon two weeks of deliberation, jurors convicted him on 10 of 23 corruption charges, including bribery, but acquitted him on seven and deadlocked over another six.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>Madigan guilty of bribery as split verdict punctuates ex-speaker\u2019s fall<\/b><\/a> | <\/b>Madigan Trial in Review<\/b><\/a> | <\/b>Michael Madigan: The Rise and Fall<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

As Friday afternoon\u2019s hearing passed the three-hour mark, Madigan accepted Blakey\u2019s invitation to make a statement to the court. After taking a drink of water, putting on his glasses and blowing his nose as he approached the bench, the former speaker addressed the judge for less than two minutes, reading from a prepared script.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m truly sorry for putting the people of the state of Illinois through this,\u201d he began, noting that he \u201ctried my best\u201d to serve the people of Illinois. \u201cI am not perfect.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Later, when explaining how he was weighing Madigan\u2019s continued insistence in his innocence, Blakey repeated Madigan\u2019s words.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe defendant says he\u2019s sorry for putting the people of Illinois through this,\u201d the judge said. \u201cI guess that\u2019s as close as we\u2019ll get to remorse.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Blakey spent a long time audibly weighing what he called \u201ca tale of two different Mike Madigans,\u201d calling the former speaker \u201ca dedicated public servant\u201d and \u201ca good and decent person.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHe had no reason to commit these crimes,\u201d the judge said. \u201cBut he chose to do so.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Blakey took particular umbrage with Madigan\u2019s performance on the witness stand in January after he made the stunning decision to testify in his own defense. In siding with the government\u2019s argument that the former speaker\u2019s sentence should take into account his perjury on the witness stand, Blakey cited several examples of times Madigan\u2019s statements conflicted with either evidence, the sworn testimony of others, or even his own testimony.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>Madigan takes witness stand, denying he traded \u2018public office\u2019 for \u2018private gain\u2019<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThe defendant\u2019s testimony was littered with obstruction of justice and it was hard to watch,\u201d Blakey said. \u201cTo put it bluntly, it was a nauseating display. … You lied, sir. You lied. You did not have to.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Madigan, who was described by many witnesses throughout his four-month trial as difficult to read \u2014 and who attempted to explain the familial origins of his reserved personality as a defense while on the witness stand \u2014 was characteristically stoic as Blakey handed down his sentence.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After conferring with his attorney, he hugged and kissed his adult children in the front row of the courtroom gallery. A few minutes later, he and his entourage of lawyers and family quickly made their way out of the Dirksen Federal Courthouse, trailed by cameras.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

True to form, the former speaker also made no statement to reporters, though he smiled slightly before getting on the elevator down to the courthouse lobby. Across the street, a man yelled to Madigan and his group, \u201cYou going to jail, buddy?<\/span><\/p>\n

Madigan was ordered to report to a yet-to-be-named federal prison on Oct. 13.<\/span><\/p>\n

Madigan\u2019s attorneys told the court he would seek a bond pending his appeal, which would allow him to remain free pending resolution of the appeal.<\/span><\/p>\n

Prosecutors had urged a 12 \u00bd-year sentence and a $1.5 million fine, while Madigan\u2019s lawyers asked for five years\u2019 probation, the first on home detention. After hearing arguments from attorneys earlier in the week, Blakey calculated the sentencing guidelines for Madigan\u2019s convictions and other factors would dictate a prison term of 105 years, but the judge was under no obligation to follow that directive.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>Prosecutors ask judge to sentence ex-Speaker Madigan to 12 \u00bd years in prison<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u2018I\u2019m not a target of anything\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

One of the last times the famously media-averse Madigan ever deigned to answer questions from journalists was in the fall of 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic afforded the speaker an even larger buffer than usual from those outside his closed circle of staff and advisors.<\/span><\/p>\n

The previous several months had yielded near-weekly developments in the public\u2019s understanding of an unfolding federal corruption probe, including revelations about FBI searches executed on the homes of close Madigan allies. The intrigue only intensified after the <\/span>indictment<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>midday FBI raids<\/span><\/a> on two different Democratic state senators and the <\/span>arrest<\/span><\/a> of a member of Madigan\u2019s own House Democratic leadership team on a charge that he bribed another Democratic senator, who happened to be <\/span>cooperating with the feds<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite his name <\/span>showing up on subpoenas<\/span><\/a> for some of those search warrants, Madigan made a bold declaration that he was not in the feds\u2019 crosshairs.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I\u2019m not a target of anything,\u201d he told a gaggle of reporters in a crowded and noisy hallway of the state Capitol in Springfield in late October 2019.<\/span><\/p>\n

Within the year, however, Madigan would be proven wrong as <\/span>prosecutors filed the first<\/span><\/a> in a series of bombshell charges alleging the longtime speaker had been the beneficiary of a yearslong bribery scheme from electric utility Commonwealth Edison. Prosecutors alleged ComEd officials agreed to hire Madigan allies, including a handful on no-work contracts, to grease the wheels at key times when the company was pushing for big and ultimately lucrative legislation in Springfield.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>Madigan Trial in Review<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

In that July 2020 filing, Madigan\u2019s status as a target of the feds\u2019 widespread corruption investigation was marked by a new moniker: \u201cPublic Official A.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

But it wasn\u2019t until March 2022 \u2014 more than a year after Madigan resigned from his biggest public roles after pressure from within the Democratic power structures he\u2019d built over decades \u2014 that the former speaker was indicted.<\/span><\/p>\n

Receiving top billing among the original 22 counts in the indictment, which was later bumped to 23, was racketeering. Prosecutors accused Madigan of using his positions as House speaker, chair of the state\u2019s Democratic Party and as partner in his real estate law firm as a \u201ccriminal enterprise\u201d meant to maintain and increase his power while enriching his allies.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>\u2018The Madigan Enterprise:\u2019 Inside the federal indictment of the state\u2019s former speaker<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

The indictment rehashed what had been already made public in July 2020 and again several months later when four former ComEd executives and lobbyists were charged with orchestrating the utility\u2019s bribery scheme aimed at Madigan.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But it also revealed that former Chicago Ald. Danny Solis had worn a wire on the speaker and alleged the speaker had agreed to get him appointed to a lucrative state board position in exchange for introductions to real estate developers to woo them as potential clients of Madigan\u2019s firm.<\/span><\/p>\n

A final charge added later in 2022 alleged a tacit bribery agreement between Madigan and telecommunications giant AT&T Illinois like the ComEd scheme, albeit smaller \u2014 involving one no-work contractor hired in the months before AT&T-backed legislation passed in Springfield.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jury delivers a split verdict<\/b><\/p>\n

On the witness stand, Madigan repeatedly claimed that he was ignorant of the fact that the collective $1.3 million his allies earned from their ComEd contracts was for performing no work. Instead, the former speaker and his lawyers framed those contracts as the result of mere job recommendations, which they argued was a component of Madigan\u2019s job as speaker.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>\u2018They were being paid as a favor to Mike Madigan\u2019: Feds\u2019 star witness takes stand<\/b>
\n<\/span><\/a>\u2018Make it a federal court suit\u2019: Jurors hear wiretap of McClain describing subcontracts alleged to be bribes<\/b>
\n<\/span><\/a>Madigan ally testifies he was rewarded with no-work contracts as \u2018good soldier\u2019 for speaker<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Madigan\u2019s attorneys, along with some of the government\u2019s own witnesses, argued the ComEd-backed legislation passed after years of strategic and expensive lobbying efforts, and not because the speaker\u2019s allies had gotten jobs and contracts with the utility.<\/span><\/p>\n

But after a slew of witnesses, including a ComEd exec-turned-FBI cooperator and one of the former contractors, in addition to secretly recorded videos and wiretapped phone calls shown at trial, the jury was ultimately convinced on most ComEd-related charges. Madigan was convicted on seven of those charges, including four counts of bribery and conspiracy, though he was acquitted on two charges related to an effort to get his ally appointed to the utility\u2019s board.<\/span><\/p>\n

Watch\/listen: <\/b>View key secretly recorded videos admitted as evidence in Madigan\u2019s trial<\/b><\/a> | <\/b>Listen to key wiretapped phone calls from the Madigan trial<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

The so-called \u201cComEd Four\u201d were <\/span>convicted in their own trial in 2023<\/span><\/a> and are scheduled to be sentenced this summer. They include Madigan\u2019s formerly close friend and longtime Springfield lobbyist Mike McClain, who was also the speaker\u2019s codefendant in the most recent trial. But after roughly 65 hours of deliberations over two weeks beginning in late January, the jury deadlocked on all six charges that named both the former speaker and McClain, including the feds\u2019 marquee racketeering allegation.<\/span><\/p>\n

The jury also deadlocked on the single count alleging Madigan\u2019s participation in the alleged bribery scheme with AT&T, forcing Blakey to declare a mistrial on that count.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It was the second time in five months that charges alleging a bribe between AT&T and Madigan resulted in a hung jury; weeks before Madigan\u2019s trial began, former AT&T Illinois President Paul La Schiazza\u2019s bribery case ended in a mistrial on all five counts against him. He faces retrial in January 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>Jury deadlocks, mistrial declared in case of ex-AT&T boss accused of bribing Madigan<\/b><\/a> | <\/b>Judge won\u2019t acquit former AT&T Illinois boss in Madigan bribery case after hung jury<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Charges involving Solis, the former Chicago alderman, ended in a mix of convictions, acquittals and deadlock from the jury. While jurors convicted the former speaker on wire fraud and Travel Act violation counts related to the alleged scheme to help get Solis appointed to a state board, they acquitted him of the bribery charge pertaining to the same alleged scheme. As laid out in trial, Madigan never ended up recommending Solis to newly elected Gov. JB Pritzker.<\/span><\/p>\n

The former speaker was also acquitted of attempted extortion and three related counts related to a real estate developer to whom Madigan wanted an introduction from Solis, who served as chair of the Chicago City Council\u2019s powerful Zoning Board. Prosecutors alleged Madigan understood and tacitly approved of Solis\u2019 made-up story that he\u2019d condition the approval of a zoning change sought by the developer on whether it agreed to hire the speaker\u2019s law firm.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the FBI\u2019s direction, Solis told the speaker ahead of the July 2017 introduction meeting that the developer understood \u201chow this works, you know, the quid pro quo\u201d \u2014 insinuating the company was under the impression that it would not get the zoning approvals it needed unless it hired the speaker\u2019s law firm, though it wasn\u2019t true.<\/span><\/p>\n

A few weeks later, Madigan admonished Solis before the developer meeting, telling the alderman, \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t be talking like that.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The feds argued Madigan was urging Solis to not speak so brazenly about their alleged bribery agreement. But on the witness stand, <\/span>the former speaker said<\/span><\/a> the alderman\u2019s use of the term \u201cquid pro quo\u201d caused him \u201ca great deal of surprise and concern\u201d to the point that he decided he needed to confront Solis about it face-to-face.<\/span><\/p>\n

In Madigan\u2019s contentious cross-examination, the lead prosecutor attempted to poke holes in the former speaker\u2019s explanation of that key moment, but Madigan maintained Solis seemed to have recognized he\u2019d \u201cmade a serious mistake\u201d and that he considered the matter settled because \u201cI was not going to connect a request for an introduction with anything else.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>In contentious cross-examination, prosecutor accuses Madigan of not telling \u2018the whole truth\u2019<\/b><\/a> | <\/b>Madigan leaves witness stand expressing regret for \u2018any time spent with Danny Solis\u2019<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

The jury also deadlocked on four other bribery, wire fraud and Travel Act charges concerning a plan to get state-owned land in Chicago\u2019s Chinatown neighborhood transferred to the city for eventual development into a mixed-use apartment building.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>\u2018There\u2019s something fishy here, don\u2019t you think?\u2019: Wiretapped calls detail Madigan confidant\u2019s confoundment over land deal<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Prosecutors alleged Madigan intended to have his firm contract with the Chinatown developer in accordance with hints Solis had dropped on secret recordings. But <\/span>Madigan\u2019s former law partner<\/span><\/a> and testimony from two <\/span>former top lawyers<\/span><\/a> in the speaker\u2019s office indicated the law firm had strict conflict-of-interest rules that would have prohibited the developer from ever becoming a client.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>Former Madigan aide testifies speaker had conflict of interest protocols<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sentencing factors<\/b><\/p>\n

In the four months post-verdict, a period nearly as long as the grueling trial itself, Madigan turned 83 \u2014 a mitigating factor his defense attorneys noted in a pre-sentencing memo late last month, which asked for five years\u2019 probation, including one on home confinement.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In another filing last week, Madigan\u2019s lawyers painted a bleak picture of the sentence sought by prosecutors, accusing them of arguing in bad faith that ComEd\u2019s investor profits should be considered as part of sentencing.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe government seeks to condemn an 83-year-old man to die behind bars for crimes that enriched him not one penny,\u201d defense attorneys wrote. \u201cThey demand that Mike Madigan spend his final years in a cell, though he spent decades as the consumers\u2019 shield against ComEd\u2019s predations.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

But much more emphasized was his role as caretaker to his wife, Shirley, who suffers from \u201ca severe lung disease,\u201d per a letter filed with the court last month from Madigan\u2019s daughter, former Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan.<\/span><\/p>\n

Instead of writing a letter, Shirley Madigan recorded a <\/span>video pleading for leniency<\/span><\/a> in sentencing. Clad in purple latex gloves with a medical mask hanging from her neck, Shirley praised her husband\u2019s character as a father and grandfather but also detailed how Madigan has become her caretaker, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic hit.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI really don\u2019t exist without him,\u201d she told the camera as B-roll of Madigan helping her up from a couch played over her testimonial. \u201cI don\u2019t know what I would do without Michael. I would probably have to find some place to live, and I\u2019d probably have to find care.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The former speaker and his lawyers echoed Shirley\u2019s pleas Friday, with attorney Dan Collins telling Blakey that for Madigan, \u201cmercy is justice,\u201d and Madigan himself asking the judge that \u201cyou let me take care of Shirley and that you let me spend my final days with my family.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Blakey said Madigan\u2019s age was a factor, but said arguments that \u201cany sentence\u201d for an older defendant is tantamount to a life sentence are \u201cnot particularly helpful.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

But the judge said he carefully considered the nearly 250 character reference letters filed on Madigan\u2019s behalf late last month, saying he \u201cplaced significant weight\u201d on the support of the former speaker\u2019s family and friends.<\/span><\/p>\n

He even got emotional when discussing Madigan\u2019s role as a husband, father and grandfather.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhatever his crimes \u2014 and he did do things wrong \u2014 but his relationship to his family? He got that right,\u201d Blakey said, echoing words the former speaker told Solis during a secretly recorded meeting between the two in 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n

Aside<\/span> from family,<\/span> faith leaders, longtime constituents and 40 former staffers, other notable letter-writers on Madigan\u2019s behalf included prominent labor leaders and three dozen former elected officials, among them several Republicans like former Gov. Jim Edgar. Attorneys also included an op-ed in support of Madigan penned by former GOP Gov. Jim Thompson before his death in 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n

Others included former U.S<\/span>. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun; former Illinois Supreme Court Justice Tom Kilbride; Democratic mega-fundraisers Michael Sacks and Fred Eychaner, and Chicago Bulls and White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf. While many former Democratic allies of Madigan penned appeals to Judge Blakey, only a few currently hold office \u2014 among them state Reps. Marcus Evans, D-Chicago, and Curtis Tarver, D-Chicago, along with Auditor General Frank Mautino.<\/span><\/p>\n

In determining sentencing guidelines, Blakey agreed with prosecutors\u2019 contention that the value of the ComEd bribes should be based on testimony from utility leader Scott Vogt during trial. Vogt cited projections that the continuation of the \u201cformula rate\u201d contained in the first piece of ComEd-backed legislation passed during the eight-year bribery scheme was worth $400 million in increased shareholder value for the company.<\/span><\/p>\n

The judge also agreed with smaller sentencing enhancements, for defendants who orchestrate bribery schemes, and for lying under oath while testifying in their own defense.<\/span><\/p>\n

Blakey gave several examples of times in which Madigan perjured himself during his four days on the witness stand, including the former speaker\u2019s attempt to \u201cfalsely minimize the clo<\/span>se and regular relationship he had with McClain.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>McClain lawyer calls star witnesses liars as trial nears conclusion<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cOther witnesses testified to their unique and close relationship, which spanned decades,\u201d Blakey said. \u201cIn short, the evidence produced at trial showed McClain was one of Madigan\u2019s most-trusted operatives, not merely one of many, as he falsely testified.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Ultimately, though, the judge\u2019s ruling in favor of sentencing enhancements for perjury and other factors is mostly symbolic, as the parties already agreed to a sentence far below the complicated calculation that would advise a 105-year prison sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sentences handed down to other convicted politicians in Illinois\u2019 long history of elected officials caught up in corruption have varied widely.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Last year, a federal judge sentenced Madigan\u2019s pseudo-counterpart in the Chicago City Council, five-decade Ald. Ed Burke, to two years in prison after his bribery conviction that also involved Solis\u2019 FBI cooperation in bringing potential clients to Burke\u2019s real estate law firm. The judge noted the number of character letters she received on the former alderman\u2019s behalf were a strong mitigating factor in her sentencing decision.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the other end of the spectrum, Gov. Rod Blagojevich was sentenced to 14 years in prison after his 2011 bribery convictions related to attempting to sell then-President-elect Barack Obama\u2019s soon-to-be-vacated U.S. Senate seat in 2008. President Donald Trump commuted his sentence in 2020, and in February pardoned him completely \u2014 just two days before Madigan\u2019s conviction.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>Trump pardons Blagojevich 5 years after commutation cut prison time short<\/b><\/a> | <\/b>Little support in Springfield for Trump\u2019s Blagojevich commutation<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Illinois\u2019 history of corruption<\/b><\/p>\n

The long list of Illinois political figures who\u2019ve been convicted on corruption charges in the last century was referenced more than once during Friday\u2019s sentencing hearing, but Blagojevich was the only politician mentioned by name.<\/span><\/p>\n

Blakey pointed to the former governor\u2019s case when explaining his authority to enhance Madigan\u2019s sentence for a bribe that wasn\u2019t fully carried out. In Blagojevich\u2019s case, \u201cno one turned out to be willing or able to pay a bribe the defendant demanded,\u201d the judge said of the U.S. Senate seat sale. In Madigan\u2019s case, the former speaker never ended up recommending Solis for a state board position, but he and Solis discussed the $93,000-per-year pay for some of the appointments.<\/span><\/p>\n

But Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Streicker\u2019s reference to Blagojevich in her sentencing arguments went beyond pointing to legal precedent, making a direct \u2014 and deeply unflattering \u2014 comparison between the ex-governor and Madigan. During Blagojevich\u2019s six years in office, he and Madigan were constantly at war with one another.<\/span><\/p>\n

Streicker quoted the late U.S. District Judge James Zagel as he sentenced Blagojevich in 2011: \u201cWhen it is the governor who goes bad, the fabric of Illinois is torn, disfigured and not easily repaired,\u201d Zagel said. \u201cYou did that damage.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The prosecutor posited that the damage from Madigan\u2019s crimes may have been worse due to his longevity at the \u201chighest levels of power\u201d in state government.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGovernors? They came and went over the years,\u201d Streicker said. \u201cBut Madigan? He stayed. His power and his presence remained constant. He had every opportunity to set the standard for honest government in this state. Instead, he fit right into the mold of yet another corrupt leader in Illinois.”<\/span><\/p>\n

But while Blakey cited deterrence as a factor in deciding Madigan\u2019s punishment, he said the former speaker \u201ccan only be sentenced for his crimes, not anyone else\u2019s.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

“You can\u2019t sentence a social problem and there\u2019s no point in trying to do that,\u201d the judge said. \u201cDefendant is responsible for his public corruption, not public corruption in the state of Illinois.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Blakey also responded to Collins\u2019 arguments that the judge base his sentence not on the \u201cmyth\u201d of Madigan \u2014 which he said included the feds\u2019 contention that the former speaker was driven by greed \u2014 but on \u201cthe reality of Mike,\u201d who has \u201clived a frugal life\u201d and \u201ctakes care of his wife.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The judge assured Collins he didn\u2019t buy into the myth of Madigan as \u201cThe Velvet Hammer\u201d or the \u201cWizard of Springfield,\u201d references to a decades-old nickname for the former speaker and a <\/span>sign that once sat on the desk<\/span><\/a> of Madigan\u2019s longtime chief of staff, who is himself serving prison time on convictions related to his ex-boss.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: <\/b>Ex-Madigan aide sentenced to 30 months in prison for obstruction of justice attempt, perjury<\/b><\/a> | <\/b>Jury convicts Madigan\u2019s longtime chief of staff on perjury, obstruction of justice charges<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWorking in the legal sausage factory in Springfield is a full-contact sport and people lie about you all the time,\u201d Blakey said, promising he wasn\u2019t taking into account \u201call that nonsense.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In Springfield, Madigan\u2019s name is still invoked during debates on the Illinois House floor, but the last 4 \u00bd years since his resignation from the legislature have seen significant turnover in the body he ruled over for all but one term, from 1983 to 2021. The political effectiveness tying Illinois Democrats to Madigan \u2014 a longtime tactic from Republicans who hold super minority status in the General Assembly \u2014 has also waned significantly since the former speaker\u2019s departure from public office.<\/span><\/p>\n

On one of the final days of the spring legislative session last month, a longtime GOP critic of Madigan even <\/span>credited the former speaker<\/span><\/a> as he was denouncing Madigan\u2019s successor, Speaker Emanuel \u201cChris\u201d Welch, for his approach to big bills.<\/span><\/p>\n

But U.S. Attorney Anthony Boutros still claimed Madigan\u2019s sentence as a victory for cleaning up corruption in Springfield.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cCorruption at the highest level of the state legislature tears at the fabric of a vital governing body,\u201d he said in a statement Friday evening.<\/span><\/p>\n

Boutros credited former Assistant U.S. Attorney Amarjeet Bhachu for leading the yearslong investigation and criminal case against Madigan and others in his inner circle, which \u201callowed this case to reach a jury and send a clear message that the criminal conduct by former Speaker Madigan was unacceptable.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Capitol News Illinois<\/span><\/i><\/a> is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com\u00a0 CHICAGO \u2014 The number of years former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan spent in Springfield has often been used as shorthand to explain […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":11384,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12336","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMadigan Sentenced to Prison - Effingham's News and Sports Leader, 979XFM and KJ Country 102.3<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Effingham's News and Sports Leader\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/local-news\/12336-madigan-sentenced-to-prison\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Madigan Sentenced to Prison - 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