Capitol News Illinois reporter Hannah Meisel is covering the corruption trial of ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan from the Dirksen Federal Courthouse in Chicago.
The former speaker, who left office under growing pressure related to the FBI investigation surrounding him in early 2021, faces 23 counts of racketeering, bribery, extortion and wire fraud.
To summarize, prosecutors allege he used his political power and various offices – including as a partner in his law firm – as a “criminal enterprise” to protect and enhance his power while enriching himself and his allies. But his defense attorneys argue the state is trying to criminalize the political process and baseline constituent services.
His co-defendant Mike McClain, a veteran Statehouse lobbyist and longtime Madigan confidant, was already convicted on public corruption charges last year in the separate but related “ComEd Four” trial. The feds are again trying to show McClain is an “agent” of Madigan, while his defense attorneys say he simply engaged in legal relationship maintenance, a core function of lobbying
Below is a rundown of the coverage from the courtroom – where the trial is scheduled each Monday through Thursday well into December. This page will be updated as the trial progresses.
WEEK FIVE: NOV. 18 – 21
Thursday, Nov. 21
Ex-Chicago Ald. Danny Solis, who secretly recorded Madigan for FBI, takes witness stand: As trial neared its conclusion for the week, ex-Chicago Ald. Danny Solis took the stand for what could be weeks of testimony. The star witness had cooperated with the FBI for years and told the jury that a bribery charge against him would be dropped if he testified against Madigan. The jury also learned that Solis’ wiretapped conversations with Madigan helped make the ex-speaker a target of the investigation in 2017, a year after Solis began cooperating. Read the story here.
Wednesday, Nov. 20
Madigan ally testifies he was rewarded with no-work contracts as ‘good soldier’ for speaker: Ed Moody held several political offices by the end of his career, thanks in large part to time he spent knocking doors on behalf of Madigan. He testified that Madigan and McClain helped him secure a $4,500 monthly contract through which he was paid indirectly by ComEd. Though he did little to no work for the utility, Moody said the payments were contingent on continuing his political work for Madigan. Read the story here.
Tuesday, Nov. 19
Wiretap: In pushing for Madigan-backed appointment, ex-ComEd CEO sought to ‘take good care’ of ‘our friend’: Chicago businessman Juan Ochoa, who was named to ComEd’s board after Madigan spent 1 ½ years pushing for the appointment, took the witness stand Tuesday. Jurors heard wiretaps regarding the appointment, including one of then-outgoing ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore telling McClain she set up a meeting between her replacement Ochoa. “You take good care of me, and so does our friend, and so I will do the best I can to take care of you,” she said. Read the story here.
Monday, Nov. 18
Madigan jury sees ‘Magic Lobbyist List’ seized from co-defendant during FBI search: McClain’s habit of printing out emails made FBI agents’ job a bit easier on May 14, 2019, as they searched his home office, another office area in the basement featuring a wall of filing cabinets and his car in the garage. The jury this week saw several of the seized documents from a series of coordinated raids, including McClain’s “magic list” of prominent Statehouse lobbyists with close ties to Madigan. Read the story here.
Coverage continues here.
For the full background on the trial, the yearslong investigation and Madigans’s fall from power, read Meisel’s preview story here: 4 decades after rising to power and nearly 4 years since his fall, former Speaker Madigan goes to trial
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