Scott Lassar News Today

Prosecutors argued against the delay, saying defense attorneys were doing a premature victory lap and that there is a public interest in seeing the case through in a timely fashion.

Sentencing hearings in the “ComEd Four” bribery case involving former House Speaker Michael Madigan will be delayed until after the U.S. Supreme Court weighs in on a key federal bribery statute that has put several high-profile public corruption cases in limbo, a judge ruled Thursday. Prosecutors had argued against the delay, saying defense attorneys were doing a premature victory lap and that ...

It was Christmastime 2013, and Portage Mayor James Snyder was in trouble. His mortgage business had tanked, the IRS was after him for a significant tax debt, and on top of that he had holiday spending to account for. His $62,000 salary as mayor of the small working-class town just wasn’t cutting it. So Snyder showed up unannounced to Great Lakes Peterbilt, the local truck dealership he’d ...

U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber has yet to decide whether those hearings should also be postponed until after the Supreme Court considers an Indiana corruption case.

A judge declined to put the ComEd bribery case fully on hold Monday despite a Supreme Court review of a key corruption law. But a similar request is expected to be made of Madigan’s judge.

The dispute is whether a federal bribery statute criminalizes only bribery, as opposed to also criminalizing so-called gratuities or rewards.

It’s a sign of how serious all sides are taking the sentencing of Madigan confidant Michael McClain, former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore, ex-ComEd lobbyist John Hooker and onetime City Club President Jay Doherty.

The Commonwealth Edison scandal engulfing indicted former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan is now costing its parent company, Exelon Corp., $46.2 million in penalties.

The Securities and Exchange Commission also filed charges against Exelon and ComEd, but their charges will be settled for $46.2 million.

The Commonwealth Edison scandal engulfing indicted former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan is now costing its parent company, Exelon Corp., $46.2 million in penalties under a new settlement with the federal Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC charged Exelon and ComEd with fraud in the alleged scheme to influence and reward Madigan as several lucrative pieces of utility ...