Excerpts from NBC 5 Chicago Ward Room
Lawyers for Rod Blagojevich filed an appeal late Monday challenging the imprisoned former Illinois governor’s corruption conviction and stiff, 14-year prison term.
The lengthy filing with the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago comes more than two years after the Chicago Democrat’s retrial and 16 months after he entered a federal prison in Colorado.
The appeal cites a juror who allegedly expressed a bias against Blagojevich who was seated despite the objections of defense attorneys. It also raises longstanding claims that Judge James Zagel barred FBI wiretap evidence that might have aided the defense and argues the judge miscalculated the appropriate prison term.
“There was no evidence or allegation that Blagojevich ever took a penny out of his campaign fund for personal use or ever sought or accepted cash or gifts from any person who had business with the State,” wrote attorneys Lauren Kaeseberg and Leonard Goodman. “The fact that Blagojevich honestly believed that his conduct comported with the laws relating to political corruption was deemed irrelevant and excluded from the jury’s consideration.”
It also claims Blagojevich was improperly denied the ability to play tapes which would have bolstered his claim of innocence and that there was no proof of any wrongdoing on the Senate seat.
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“The central charge against Blagojevich, that he attempted to sell Barack Obama’s old Senate seat, is false,” they wrote. “The evidence showed that Blagojevich attempted to make a political deal with Obama where Blagojevich would appoint Obama’s choice for the Senate, and in exchange, Obama would make Blagojevich part of his administration.”
The appeal was filed about 30 minutes before a midnight deadline to do so.
The deadline to appeal Blagojevich’s corruption conviction already has been pushed back several times. Attorney Lauren Kaeseberg told the Associated Press the appeal will be filed in Chicago’s 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals but declined to comment on its contents.
Appeals can take years to play out, and defendants rarely prevail.
The deadline to appeal Blagojevich’s corruption conviction already has been pushed back several times. Attorney Lauren Kaeseberg told the Associated Press the appeal will be filed in Chicago’s 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals but declined to comment on its contents.
Jurors convicted Blagojevich on 18 counts in 2011, including charges that he tried to sell or trade President Barack Obama’s vacated U.S. Senate seat. He reported to a Colorado federal prison on March 15, 2012.
Kaeseberg said in March the former governor has found a variety of ways to occupy his free time, including teaching Civil War history, learning to play the guitar and keeping a journal.
“He’s been doing a lot of reading. He’s actually, you know, been sort of tinkering with different musical instruments with other inmates,” she said.
Blagojevich’s scheduled release date is May 23, 2024. If he stays in prison until then, he’d be 67 years old upon release.
Source: http://www.nbcchicago.com/blogs/ward-room/Deadline-Blagojevich-Appeal-215535091.html#ixzz2ZDKJqL6l