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ComEd Four trial coverage roundup

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* The jury is now deliberating…

Tribune | Jury deliberating fate of ‘ComEd Four’ in bribery case tied to Michael Madigan; prosecutors calls payments to speaker a ‘corruption toll’:

* Crain’s | The fate of ‘ComEd Four’ now up to the jury: Bhachu dismissed a repeated argument from defense attorneys — that there could have been no bribery of state House Speaker Michael Madigan because no one was caught on an intercepted recording or in an email arguing that Commonwealth Edison should just get Madigan to pass whatever bill they proposed instead of mounting sophisticated legislative strategies and making compromises. Those statements weren’t made, Bhachu said, “because the defendants weren’t that stupid.” “These defendants were careful,” he said. “We’re not talking about amateurs here. They were not playing checkers. They were playing chess. . . .These were grandmasters of corruption.”

* Hannah Meisel | ‘Corrupt influence’ or ‘collateral damage’? Jury to decide fate of ‘ComEd Four’: Cotter sought to remind the jury of the case’s roots, noting that an FBI agent testified early on in the trial that the investigation stretched back to 2014, and that the original target was Madigan. In the last several years, the sprawling federal probe has nabbed dozens of other politicians, lobbyists and business leaders in Illinois. “I believe this is a case of a conclusion in search of evidence,” Cotter said. “If you start by assuming Madigan is guilty, then everyone near Madigan starts to look guilty.” And there was almost no one nearer to Madigan than McClain; their friendship goes back to the 1970s when they served together as young Democratic representatives in the Illinois House. On numerous wiretapped phone calls and in letters shown to the jury during trial, McClain described himself as an “agent” of the speaker. Other witnesses described McClain as a “double agent” who always put Madigan’s interests first even as he was ComEd’s top outside lobbyist and strategist.

* Sun-Times | Federal jury begins deliberating ComEd bribery case after prosecutors call four defendants ‘grand masters of corruption’: While addressing that allegation, Bhachu displayed the words “This Is Not a Cup of Coffee” on a screen in the courtroom. Bhachu told the jurors that they heard the “unvarnished truth” in recordings played throughout the trial. And he said what they heard on the witness stand from Pramaggiore and Hooker was “the post-hoc explanation, after the fact, to try to conceal and explain away what was on the recordings.”

* The Center Square | Jury deliberations underway in ComEd bribery trial: “This is not a bribery conspiracy,” said Jacqueline Jacobson, the lawyer for Hooker. “This is a business decision.” … Defense attorneys said their clients did nothing wrong in lobbying politicians, including Madigan, to pass three energy measures that helped the utility bounce back from the brink of bankruptcy. One witness estimated the legislation was worth about $750 million for the utility through 2030.

* NBC Chicago | Jury Deliberations Begin in ‘ComEd 4′ Trial: The final defendant to make his case in the trial was Doherty, whose attorney described him as a “Chicago guy, who has nothing to do with Springfield.” “Zero. Not a thing,” Mike Gillespie said. “He’s also not a Madigan guy, pure and simple.”

* ABC Chicago | Jury gets bribery case surrounding ex-Speaker Mike Madigan: “This isn’t maybe, or I think so, or probably. It is beyond a reasonable doubt. That’s the burden,” said defense attorney Michael Gillespie in his closing arguments Tuesday morning. “This isn’t a group that’s on trial. The law dictates you must consider the evidence as it relates to each defendant individually.”

posted by Isabel Miller
Wednesday, Apr 26, 23 @ 9:34 am

Comments

The consensus predictions of neutral observers who were in the courtroom for the closings and much of the trial: Doherty and McClain are in trouble; Hooker and Primaggiore verdicts could go either way.

Comment by Itsthelaw Wednesday, Apr 26, 23 @ 10:58 am
===The consensus predictions of neutral observers===

Not saying either way, but there’s a reason why prosecutors have an almost unblemished win-loss record in conspiracy cases like these. Jury instructions are the most important thing. And those instructions are inherently stacked against the defendants.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Apr 26, 23 @ 11:06 am
Jay Doherty is a nice guy who got caught up in a criminal enterprise. Dumb or not, he did what he did and will be judged on his actions, not his niceness. McClain was the ring leader, and the ultimate Madigan supplicant and enabler. He should be cuffed as soon as the verdict is read and taken right to a jail cell. Do not pass go. Do not collect 200 dollars. This should send a clear signal to mike madigan that his time will come as well. Maybe madigan should do what those who worked for him suggested Blago do. Please guilty and cut a deal.

Comment by McCloon Wednesday, Apr 26, 23 @ 11:30 am
===and cut a deal===

The feds cut deals with little fish to get at the big fish. The feds believe Madigan was at the very top of the fish food chain. Ain’t nothing to cut a deal on, unless it’s to go easy on the others. And it’s far too late for that.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Apr 26, 23 @ 11:32 am
They may gove him a reduced sentence if he skips wasting everybody’s time with a trial.

Comment by McCloon Wednesday, Apr 26, 23 @ 12:16 pm
===He should be cuffed as soon as the verdict is read and taken right to a jail cell.===

Yet Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes is out free as her appeal chugs along in the 9th US Circuit. And she’s younger and healthier.

Comment by Anyone Remember Wednesday, Apr 26, 23 @ 2:37 pm