Madigan sentenced to stiff seven and a half years in prison on corruption case

Former Illinois Speaker of the House Michael J. Madigan Sentenced to Seven and a Half Years in Federal Prison after Corruption Conviction

A federal judge in Chicago today sentenced former Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives Michael J. Madigan to seven and a half years in federal prison for using his official position to corruptly solicit and receive personal financial rewards for himself and his associates.

A jury in U.S. District Court in Chicago earlier this year convicted Madigan of conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States; using interstate facilities to promote unlawful activity; wire fraud; and bribery.

Evidence at the four-month trial revealed that Madigan, who served as House Speaker and occupied a number of other political roles, conspired with others to cause the utility company Commonwealth Edison to make monetary payments to Madigan’s associates as a reward for their loyalty to Madigan, in return for performing little or no legitimate work for the business.

The true nature of the payments was to influence and reward Madigan in connection with specific legislation ComEd sought in the Illinois General Assembly.

Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

Madigan, 83, of Chicago, also schemed with an Alderman of the Chicago City Council to steer legal work to Madigan’s private law firm and Madigan’s son, in exchange for Madigan’s assistance in inducing the Governor of Illinois to appoint the Alderman to a compensated state board position.

After reviewing Madigan’s criminal conduct and finding that Madigan perjured himself repeatedly in his trial testimony, U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey imposed the seven-and-a-half-year prison sentence and fined Madigan $2.5 million.

The sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI, and Ramsey E. Covington, Special Agent-in-Charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division in Chicago.

The government was represented today by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Streicker, Diane MacArthur, and Julia Schwartz.

“Corruption at the highest level of the state legislature tears at the fabric of a vital governing body,” said U.S. Attorney Boutros.

“It was the grit and determination of our team of prosecutors and law enforcement agents, led by our former colleague, Amarjeet S. Bhachu, who served as the Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Public Corruption and Organized Crime Section until earlier this year, that allowed this case to reach a jury and send a clear message that the criminal conduct by former Speaker Madigan was unacceptable. I couldn’t be prouder of the strong commitment of our law enforcement partners at the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation. Our Office and our partners remain steadfast in our commitment to vigorously prosecute corruption at all levels of government and hold public officials accountable for violating the public trust.”

“Mr. Madigan was elected to serve the people of Illinois, but his actions demonstrated time and time again that his priority was his own personal interests and gain,” said FBI SAC DePodesta.

“Thanks to the dedicated investigative and prosecutorial teams, he will now be held accountable for those criminal actions. The FBI remains dedicated to aggressively investigating corruption and fraud to ensure that the public has faith in our democratic institutions and elected leaders who are truly honest and fair.”

“Today’s sentencing marks a pivotal moment in our commitment to uphold the integrity of public service,” said IRS-CI SAC Covington.

“Through meticulously tracing the flow of illicit funds tied to legislative influence and no‑show jobs, our team has demonstrated that no individual—regardless of stature or tenure—is beyond the reach of the law. Holding Michael J. Madigan accountable today reinforces the core principle that public trust is sacred, and those who betray it will be brought to justice.”

Click here to subscribe FREE to Ray Hanania's Columns

Author
Recent Posts

Ray Hanania

Ray Hanania is an award-winning opinion columnist, author & former Chicago City Hall reporter (1977-1992). A veteran who served during the Vietnam War and the recipient of four SPJ Peter Lisagor Awards for column writing, Hanania writes weekly opinion columns on mainstream American & Chicagoland topics for the Southwest News-Herald, Des Plaines Valley News, the Regional News, The Reporter Newspapers, and Suburban Chicagoland.

His award winning columns can be found at www.HANANIA.COM Subscribe FREE today

Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.

Email Ray Hanania at [email protected].

Follow RayHanania at Twitter