Ex-Illinois House Speaker Sentenced to 7.5 Years in Prison (2)

Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan on Friday was sentenced to 90 months in prison and a $2.5 million fine on federal corruption convictions, punctuating the extraordinary downfall of a politician once thought nearly untouchable.

At a sentencing hearing in which prosecutors repeatedly invoked Illinois’ long history of public corruption, the judge called back to the state’s most famously forthright politician.

“The Abraham Lincolns of the world are few and far between. It’s really hard to be Honest Abe,” said Judge John Robert Blakey of the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. “Being great is hard. But being honest is not. Being honest actually is fairly easy. It’s hard to commit crimes.”

“This case is really sad,” he continued, “because the defendant is a dedicated public servant, apart from the crimes proven in this case.”

Madigan, 83, was ordered to report to prison in October. Defense attorney Daniel Collins of Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP indicated they would request he remain on bond pending an appeal.

Madigan and his attorneys left the courthouse Friday without comment.

In a written statement, US Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois Andrew Boutros credited the “grit and determination” of the prosecution team.

“Corruption at the highest level of the state legislature tears at the fabric of a vital governing body,” he said.

In a brief statement in court before the sentence was announced, Madigan said he was “truly sorry for putting the people of the state of Illinois through this.”

“I tried to do my best to serve the people of the state of Illinois,” he told the judge in a calm, matter-of-fact tone. “I am not perfect.”

Madigan said he was proud of being a good husband, father, and grandfather, and asked Blakey to allow him to take care of his wife, who has significant health issues.

The courtroom was jam-packed for the lengthy sentencing, and a front row of the gallery was full of Madigan’s supporters. Absent from the courtroom, however, was former Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, one of the ex-speaker’s daughters.

In delivering the sentence, Blakey noted that Madigan was by all accounts a dedicated family man with a long history of public service, and said he would not attempt to hold Madigan accountable for all the state’s sordid history of corruption: “You can’t sentence a social problem, and there’s no point in trying to do that.”

But Madigan’s actions were a significant violation of the public trust, Blakey said, finding that Madigan lied repeatedly during testimony on his own behalf at trial.

“To put it bluntly, it was a nauseating display,” Blakey said, and moments later looked directly at Madigan. “You lied, sir. You lied.”

A Significant Gap

Blakey had to traverse a wide gap at Friday’s hearing.

Prosecutors argued for a 12.5-year prison sentence, saying in their sentencing memorandum that Madigan was “steeped in corruption” and that they’d recommend an even longer sentence but for his advanced age. The defense argued that five years of probation would be more appropriate, calling him “a singularly helpful and devoted public servant who is widely respected for his honesty and integrity.”

Collins on Friday urged Blakey against sentencing based on “rhetoric” and the mythos surrounding Madigan.

“It ought to be about the reality of Mike. When the government talks about power and greed, that is not the reality,” he said. “Mike did not seek power, he tried to lead his party. He did not seek to be greedy, he led a very frugal life.”

Prosecutors said a significant prison sentence was necessary to remind politicians that misconduct carries real risk. Assistant US Attorney Sarah Streicker said the damage Madigan did was more significant than that of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D), who was convicted on public corruption charges in 2011. He has since been pardoned by President Donald Trump.

“Governors, they came and went over the years, but Madigan stayed,” Streicker said. “His power and his presence remained constant.”

Madigan, the so-called “Velvet Hammer,” was widely considered the most powerful man in Illinois politics during his decades-long reign over the state House. A student of the old-school Chicago machine system, he was by turns revered and reviled for maintaining his influence amid changes in political winds and the demographics of his Southwest Side district.

He resigned his seat in 2021 as a federal bribery investigation heated up, ending his career as the longest-serving state House leader in the nation’s history.

The charges handed down in 2022 were the apex of a lengthy federal probe examining, among other things, his influence over electric utility Commonwealth Edison. Prosecutors allege he led a long-running criminal enterprise aimed at maintaining his power and influence, including schemes to get no-work jobs for his political allies and use his political power to get business for his private law firm, then known as Madigan & Getzendanner.

Dramatic Trial

His four-month trial featured lengthy testimony from Chicago alderman-turned-FBI mole Daniel Solis, who wore a wire to record video and audio of his fellow politicians, and former ComEd executive Fidel Marquez, who also cooperated with the government. Jurors heard extensive wiretapped conversations between Madigan and his allies.

And in a somewhat surprising move, Madigan took the stand in his own defense. In folksy, comfortable testimony, he denied wrongdoing, hoping to persuade jurors he only ever acted out of a drive to help people.

In the end, the jury returned a complicated split verdict, deadlocking on several counts—including the marquee racketeering charge and a count alleging a bribery scheme involving AT&T Illinois—and acquitting on several others.

But jurors convicted Madigan on 10 counts, including multiple charges alleging a scheme in which ComEd gave Madigan associates lucrative no-work contracts in exchange for Madigan’s favorable treatment of their legislation.

Charged alongside Madigan was his longtime confidant, legislator-turned-lobbyist Michael McClain. Jurors deadlocked on all counts against McClain, who also faced a separate indictment in the related “ComEd Four” case.

That trial ended with convictions for McClain and three other utility insiders in 2023, though the counts alleging they bribed Madigan were thrown out this year after a US Supreme Court ruling narrowed the federal bribery statute. They are slated to be sentenced this summer on the remaining counts.

Madigan is also represented by Breen & Pugh.

The case is United States v. Madigan, N.D. Ill., No. 1:22-cr-00115, sentencing hearing 6/13/25.