Michael Madigan to be sentenced in June, federal judge says
Former Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan is scheduled to be sentenced June 13, four months after his historic conviction for a bribery conspiracy and other crimes.
U.S. District Judge John Blakey scheduled the highly anticipated hearing in an order on the court docket Wednesday. He also confirmed that he intends to hold a forfeiture hearing earlier that week, on June 9, that could result in a financial judgment against Madigan.
A jury found Madigan guilty Feb. 12 of a nearly decadelong bribery conspiracy involving ComEd. It also convicted him of a plot to install former 25th Ward Ald. Danny Solis on a state board in exchange for Solis’ help securing private business for Madigan’s law firm.
However, that jury also acquitted Madigan of some counts and failed to reach a verdict on others. Most notably, jurors couldn’t agree whether to find Madigan guilty of a broad racketeering conspiracy, in which he was accused of turning his political empire into a criminal enterprise.
The partial verdict came down at the end of a four-month trial that featured more than 60 witnesses. The jury deliberated for nearly 65 hours over 11 days.
Madigan was the longest-serving state House leader in the United States. The news that his sentencing hearing has been scheduled comes five days after one of the lead prosecutors on the case, Assistant U.S. Attorney Amarjeet Bhachu, was expected to leave the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The jury that convicted Madigan considered, among other things, evidence that had been gathered by Solis. The longtime City Council member agreed to wear a wire in 2016 after the FBI confronted him with evidence of his own wrongdoing. Solis struck a deal with prosecutors that will likely save him from a criminal conviction. He left the City Council in 2019.
Now, Madigan’s sentencing is set to take place one year after a judge sentenced former Ald. Edward M. Burke for a racketeering conviction that involved Solis and the same broader FBI investigation. Burke is now serving a two-year prison sentence handed down by U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall in June 2024.
Still, Burke’s sentence caught many by surprise. Prosecutors sought a much harsher 10-year prison term. But Kendall pointed to hundreds of letters written on Burke’s behalf detailing his charitable works over the years. She made note of his age — he’s now 81 — and she criticized the deal the feds struck with Solis.
Now Blakey will likely face a similar set of circumstances. Madigan will be 83 when he’s sentenced. He built a political empire over decades in Chicago. And he, like Burke, was secretly recorded by Solis. A crucial difference may be Madigan's decision to testify in his own defense, though. Prosecutors could argue he committed perjury on the stand.
They already insisted to jurors, during closing arguments, that Madigan lied under oath.
Blakey gave prosecutors and defense attorneys until May 30 to make their sentencing recommendations for Madigan.