Longest-serving legislative leader in US history given 7 1/2 years in
federal corruption case
[June 14, 2025]
By JOHN O'CONNOR
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — The stunning downward spiral of Michael
Madigan’s political career ended Friday with a 7 1/2-year prison
sentence and a $2.5 million fine for the former Illinois House speaker
and the longest-serving legislative leader in U.S. history after he was
convicted of trading legislation for the enrichment of his friends and
allies.
U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey sentenced the 83-year-old in U.S.
District Court in Chicago.
Nicknamed the “Velvet Hammer” for his quiet but hard-nosed style,
Madigan was convicted in February on 10 of 23 counts in a remarkable
corruption trial that lasted four months. The case churned through 60
witnesses and mountains of documents, photographs and taped
conversations.
Federal prosecutors sought a 12 1/2-year prison term. Madigan’s
attorneys wanted five years' probation, saying he is a good man who
tried to do right by taxpayers and needs to be home to care for his
ailing wife, Shirley, who submitted a videotaped statement to the court
requesting her husband be able to come home.
But Blakey noted that federal sentencing guidelines allowed for a term
of 105 years based on findings in evidence — notably that Madigan
committed perjury when he took the stand in his own defense. Blakey was
particularly piqued over what he called “a nauseating display of perjury
and evasion.”
“You lied. You did not have to. You had a right to sit there and
exercise your right to silence,” Blakey said. “But you took the stand
and you took the law into your own hands.”
During a legislative career spanning half a century, Madigan served
nearly four decades as speaker, the longest on record for a U.S.
legislator. Combined with more than 20 years as chairperson of the
Illinois Democratic Party, he set much of the state’s political agenda
while handpicking candidates for political office. More often than not,
he also controlled political mapmaking, drawing lines to favor his
party.
Meanwhile, prosecutors said, the Chicago Democrat built a private legal
career that allowed him to amass a net worth of $40 million.
Madigan was convicted on 10 counts of bribery, conspiracy, wire fraud
and other charges for ensuring approval of legislation favorable to
utility giant ComEd in exchange for kickbacks and jobs and contracts for
loyalists, including a Chicago alderman seeking a paid job on a state
board after retiring from government.
The jury deadlocked on six counts, including an overarching racketeering
conspiracy charge, and acquitted him on seven others.
Madigan spoke briefly before sentencing, asking to avoid prison so he
could care for his wife and spend his final years with his family.
[to top of second column]
|
Flanked by attorneys and supporters, Illinois' former House Speaker
Michael Madigan walks into the Dirksen Federal Courthouse for his
sentencing hearing, Friday, June 13, 2025, in Chicago. (Ashlee Rezin/Chicago
Sun-Times via AP)
“I’m truly sorry for putting the people of the state of Illinois
through this,” Madigan said. “I tried to do my best to serve the
people of the state of Illinois. I am not perfect.”
During a three-and-a-half-hour hearing, Blakey noted the numerous
letters sent to the court supporting Madigan. The judge said Madigan
was a good family man and a kind man, helping his neighbors without
pause.
But he said, “Being great is hard. Being honest is not. It's hard to
commit crimes. It actually takes effort.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Streicker hammered home the fact that
Madigan has not taken responsibility for the crimes or shown any
remorse.
Streicker noted that Madigan, having served as speaker through seven
governors, “had every opportunity to set the standard for honest
government.” Instead, she said, “he fit right into the mold of yet
another corrupt leader in Illinois.”
Defense lawyers had called the government’s recommended sentence
“draconian” and, given Madigan’s age, a life sentence.
“He did not seek to be greedy. He lived a very frugal life …,”
Madigan attorney Dan Collins said. “The rhetoric wants to make Mike
responsible for the long history of corruption in Illinois. He is
not, Judge. He is one man.”
They asked Blakey to consider the totality of Madigan’s life and
work and the need to care for his wife in requesting a sentence of
five years’ probation, with one year of home confinement, a
requirement to perform community service and a “reasonable fine.”
In a video submitted to the court, Shirley Madigan said she needed
her husband to come home.
“I really don’t exist without him,” she said. “I wish I could say
that I do, but I don’t know what I would do without Michael. I would
probably have to find someplace to live and I'd probably have to
find care.”
Tried alongside Madigan was his former legislative colleague and
longtime confidant, Michael McClain. The jury couldn’t reach a
decision on any of the six counts against McClain. He was convicted,
though, in a separate trial over the ComEd conspiracy last year.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
