Prairie State Wire

A federal judge has postponed the corruption trial of former state House Speaker Michael Madigan by six months. Contrary to the wishes of federal prosecutors, U.S. District Judge Robert Blakey moved Madigan's initial trial date from April 1 to Oct. 8, as the U.S. Supreme Court is currently reviewing a case that could potentially influence the charges against Madigan.

The Supreme Court is deliberating on whether federal bribery charges against a former mayor of Portage, Indiana criminalize "gratuities," or "payments in recognition of actions a state or local official has already taken or committed to take, without any quid pro quo agreement to take those actions." According to Judge Blakey, the Supreme Court's ruling could impact some of the charges against Madigan and co-defendant Michael McClain. To avoid a potential re-trial, Blakey decided to postpone the trial by six months, as reported by the Sun-Times.

WTTW noted in December that legal representatives for Madigan and McClain argued that the intricate legal aspects of the Supreme Court case could significantly affect the corruption charges against the former speaker.

"The interests of judicial economy and fairness to the parties, particularly the defendants, dictate the need for a stay of the proceedings or, at the very least, a continuance of the trial date until after the Supreme Court renders its decision in Snyder," attorneys for Madigan and McClain stated.

Madigan is facing racketeering charges related to his alleged involvement in corruption schemes such as extortion, wire fraud, and bribery. The indictment was issued by The U.S. Attorney's Office in Northern District of Illinois in March 2022 and underscored Madigan's alleged benefits from these activities. Initially indicted for racketeering and bribery under accusations of exploiting his official position for personal financial gains, a superseding indictment added a conspiracy count related to an alleged corruption scheme involving AT&T Illinois in October of the same year, as reported by Prairie State Wire.