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Rod Blagojevich’s Win Not Likely To Scare Prosecution

Even though ex Ill Governor Rod Blagojevich will get another chance to plead his case, the prosecution has made it fully aware that they have no intention of letting the conviction be overturned in th...
Rod Blagojevich’s Win Not Likely To Scare Prosecution
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  • Even though ex Ill Governor Rod Blagojevich will get another chance to plead his case, the prosecution has made it fully aware that they have no intention of letting the conviction be overturned in their 169 page response motion calling his appeal an ‘extraordinary claim.’

    His legal defensed filed an appeal in July arguing that his case should be overturned or at least have the harsh sentence reconsidered. On Friday, the 7th U.S. Circuit of Appeals in Chicago agreed to hear their case according to NBC news.

    On December 13, the convicted Chicago politician will have his 2011 case revisited as he argues that he was unjustly sentenced to prison for doing what he felt was ‘standard political horse-trading.’ The prosecution doesn’t seem worried that their conviction is in jeopardy.

    Rod Blagojevich was convicted at his 2nd trial in 2011 on 17 counts including wire fraud, attempted extortion, and conspiracy to commit bribery. In 2008, he was caught trading money for cabinet positions in return for appointing Valerie Jarrett to replace Obama. He was sentenced to 14 years.

    In their response, the prosecution argues that Blagojevich offers no legal authority supporting the belief that his actions were lawful because the money was provided by another public official. The evidence was clear that there was an exchange of Medicare rate increase for campaign contributions. The proof that contributions were made with the expectation that politicians’ actions would be influenced was overwhelming according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Riggs Bonamici.

    According to MSN, His defense attorneys are claiming that if their client believed that what he was doing was unlawful, why would he not make any effort to conceal what he was doing? The courts had excluded his testimony that he “honestly believed” his conduct was legal. Blagojevich not only felt it was lawful, but also in the interest of the public. He also did not profit from the deals.

    The prosecution ultimate claim is the abundance of evidence against Blagojevich regardless of his contention of ignorance.

    Photo from Wikimedia Commons

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