A federal judge on Wednesday declined to dismiss criminal charges leveled against former Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan involving an alleged bribery scheme at ComEd, despite a U.S. Supreme Court ruling this summer that threatened the feds’ case against the powerful former politician.
U.S. District Judge John Blakey’s ruling came down less than a week before Madigan is set to face trial, and less than an hour before a status hearing in the high-profile case.
News that the Supreme Court picked up a northwest Indiana corruption case interrupted momentum prosecutors built in 2023, when they secured convictions against nine people in five trials that resulted from public corruption investigations here.
Blakey agreed in January to delay Madigan’s trial by six months for fear that the high court’s ruling could be problematic. He compared it to stepping on a Lego block in the dark when his children were young.
But the ultimate effect of the Supreme Court’s deliberations on Madigan’s case appear to be miminal, so far. The court ruled that a key federal law employed against Madigan outlaws bribery but not after-the-fact rewards known as “gratuities.”
Prosecutors have acknowledged the court’s ruling and have insisted they can still move forward on a so-called “stream of benefits” theory. In his ruling Wednesday, Blakey said that would satisfy the Supreme Court’s “quid pro quo” requirement.
Blakey also denied a separate request from Madigan’s co-defendant, Michael McClain, to be tried separately from the former speaker.
Madigan is accused of leading a “criminal enterprise” for nearly a decade designed to enhance his political power and generate income for his allies and associates. His trial is set for Oct. 8.
Much of the evidence against him has already been aired in court and considered by juries. For example, a jury in May 2023 convicted four former political insiders, including McClain, for scheming to bribe Madigan to benefit ComEd.
The four defendants are challenging that verdict in the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling.
Meanwhile, the former head of AT&T Illinois also went to trial last month, accused of trying to bribe Madigan to get crucial legislation passed in Springfield. The jury failed to reach a verdict.
Madigan is charged for his role in both of those schemes. But he is also accused of trying to use his powerful position to steer money to his private law firm — a claim that’s reminiscent of the case against former Ald. Edward M. Burke (14th).