Defendants push back in ComEd bribery case

[April 13, 2023]  By Glenn Minnis | The Center Square Contributor

(The Center Square) – Defense attorneys began presenting their case Wednesday after weeks of testimony from witnesses for federal prosecutors who alleged the four defendants conspired in a pay-for-play with former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan scheme to benefit a utility.

In the courtroom of U.S. District Judge Harry Leininweber at the Federal Dirksen Courthouse, attorney for former Commonwealth Edison CEO Anne Pramaggiore began her defense by calling Illinois Appellate Court Justice David Ellis, who in 2011 served as Madigan’s top attorney in advancing a bill that paved the way for the utility giant to set up its smart grid program as well as set formula rates that quickly became a source of contention for many.

Charged along with Prakaggiore in the alleged scheme to bribe Madigan to the benefit of ComEd are former lobbyist and Madigan confidante Michael McClain, retired ComEd executive John Hooker and one-time ComEd consultant and ex-City Club of Chicago president Jay Doherty.

Each of the four has pleaded not guilty, with attorneys for each of the defendants arguing that the actions prosecutors point to as criminal were simply legal lobbying tactics.

Madigan and McClain are also set to go to trial sometime in the spring of 2024 in a separate case where they face a 23-count indictment that includes racketeering, bribery and official misconduct charges.

Former ComEd lobbyist John Hooker; Michael McClain, a long time Madigan confidante; former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore; and Jay Doherty, a lobbyist and consultant who once served as chief of the City Club of Chicago.

As questioning intensified on Wednesday, Ellis told the court that Madigan was instrumental in him landing on the bench, affirming that the longest-serving legislative leader in history "ran" his 2014 campaign. He said that McClain donated $1,000 to his judicial campaign and that Hooker contributed $500.

Before Ellis took the stand, jurors heard from Val Jensen, a former ComEd executive, who described Pramaggiore as a "genuine" leader who "always said to do the right thing and do what we promised the legislature we would do." He later added "I think she’s very honest. I was never in a situation when I felt she wasn’t being honest."

The defense began presenting its case after jurors heard from former top Madigan precinct captain Edward Moody over several days, where he testified under oath that he always felt the hundreds of thousands of dollars he pocketed from ComEd were meant to keep him pounding the pavement for Madigan's campaign machine.

The one-time Cook County commissioner and recorder of deeds acknowledged he collected more than $354,000 over six years commencing in 2012, with the money being paid to him by ComEd and through the company’s contracts with four different firms.

Over time, Moody added that Madigan, whom he has now known for more than three decades, arranged for him to make $45,000 a year through McClain’s law firm.

All told from 2012 to 2018, Moody told jurors he reaped hundreds of thousands of dollars in payments from several companies with ties to Madigan where he was required to do little to no work at all.