Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan has been sentenced to 7 ½ years in prison for corruption involving the abuse of the powerful state office he held for decades.
A jury in February convicted Madigan on 10 criminal counts, including bribery conspiracy, wire fraud and other crimes. The jury delivered its verdict at the end of a four-month trial featuring more than 60 witnesses. All told, the panel convicted Madigan for his role in two schemes.
The first scheme involved ComEd, which paid five Madigan allies $1.3 million over eight years so that Madigan would look more favorably at the utility’s legislation in Springfield. The other involved a plot to install then-Chicago Ald. Danny Solis on a state government board in exchange for Solis’ help landing private business for Madigan’s tax appeals law firm.
Prosecutors asked U.S. District Judge John Blakey to give Madigan 12 ½ years behind bars. Defense attorneys sought probation for the Southwest Side Democrat. Nearly 250 people wrote letters supporting Madigan, and his wife made a video-recorded plea to the judge.
Madigan, the country’s longest-serving state House leader, served as speaker of the Illinois House from 1983 until 2021, with the exception of two years when Republicans took control. Along the way, he developed a reputation as an all-powerful political wizard who wielded vast influence over laws affecting nearly every aspect of life in the state.
A political disciple of the late Mayor Richard J. Daley, Madigan grew up in Chicago’s tight-knit 13th Ward. He explained to the jury that his father was a union man, involved in local politics, and an alcoholic.
But on the witness stand, Madigan denied that he’d ever traded his public office for private gain, or demanded or accepted something of value in exchange for an official act. Prosecutors now say Madigan committed perjury when he testified in his own defense.
They also disclosed this month that Madigan has an estimated net worth of $40 million, though Blakey wound up striking that from the record at the request of Madigan’s attorneys.
The probe that snared Madigan dates back to 2014. Prosecutors secured his conviction partly with help from Solis. The longtime former 25th Ward Council member agreed to wear a wire for the FBI after agents confronted him with evidence of his own wrongdoing.
Solis also helped the feds convict ex-Chicago Ald. Edward M. Burke, who is already serving a two-year prison term.
Solis struck a three-year deal with prosecutors, in which they agreed to seek dismissal of a bribery charge filed against him in 2022. A judge tossed the charge in May, meaning Solis gets to walk away with his clean criminal record intact.
In all, the investigation led to criminal charges against roughly 20 people. Nine have gone to prison so far. Four others are set to be sentenced in the coming weeks. They are Madigan ally Michael McClain, former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore, ex-ComEd lobbyist John Hooker and onetime City Club President Jay Doherty.
