* Earlier this month, Judge Manish Shah tossed out the bribery convictions in the ComEd Four case…

A federal judge Monday granted a new trial on some counts in the “ComEd Four” case alleging a wide-ranging plot to illegally influence then-House Speaker Michael Madigan, saying the Supreme Court’s ruling last year on a key bribery statute means the jury was not instructed properly.

In making his ruling, however, U.S. District Judge Manish Shah left intact the convictions on a number of other counts, including the lead count of conspiracy and charges alleging the defendants cooked ComEd’s books to hide the scheme.

* A status hearing was held this morning in the ComEd Four case. Sun-Times Federal Courts Reporter Jon Seidel…

* Prosecutors asked to proceed with sentencing on the counts that Judge Shah left in place. Tribune…

Defense attorneys strongly objected, saying they received a letter recently from U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office saying the case was under review by the Department of Justice, which would make a decision whether the false statements counts charged under the FCPA should be dropped.

The defense also said the Supreme Court’s ruling last week in the case of former Chicago Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson gives them further ammunition to argue that the false statements counts should not stand.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Streicker, however, said they have no timetable on when the attorney general might weigh in and have “received no guidance” on what the decision might be. “We will follow whatever guidance we get,” she said.

“The defendants have had more than a full opportunity over the past two years to make post trial motions…It is now time for sentencing,” Streicker said. There is no basis to just delay sentencing based upon a hope that something might turn the defendant’s way.”

Shah agreed, saying he was satisfied that a proceeding to sentencing would finally bring the prosecution to a close and leave it in the hands of appellate courts. He said he wanted to sentence the four defendants separately sometime in July and asked the parties to consult their schedules and get back to him.

* Sun-Times…

Pramaggiore attorney Scott Lassar told the judge that prosecutors wanted to proceed to sentencing, while also reserving any decision on whether to retry the four defendants on the overturned bribery counts. He objected.

“It sounds like they’re going to wait and see what the sentence is, and then they’ll decide whether they’ll dismiss the counts,” Lassar said.

But Shah asked Streicker, “if I set sentencing dates and there is a sentencing on the counts of conviction, will the government dismiss the remaining counts?”

Streicker told him, “yes, that would be our intention.”

* Judge Shah said he’s looking at July. The Tribune’s Jason Meisner…