Trial expected to last months
CHICAGO (WLS) -- The corruption trial for former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan has begun.
Madigan had been indicted on federal racketeering and bribery charges as a part of what federal prosecutors call "the Madigan enterprise," where they say he allegedly committed crimes for his personal gain and that of his political allies.
The blockbuster trial is expected to take several months.
Check back with ABC7 Chicago for live updates.
In his day-long testimony, ComEd's former General Counsel Tom O'Neill got to the heart of the corruption charges against Madigan and his co-defendant, Mike McClain.
O'Neill described the utility giant as one which, in July of 2010, was in a "precarious financial position": a company in desperate need of a new way to set customer rates.
Tasked with helping to make that happen, O'Neill spent the next six and a half years going back and forth to Springfield, negotiating and drafting three major pieces of legislation that were critical to turning around ComEd's fortunes.
"I got asked frequently, if not constantly: Does the speaker support this? Or, where is the speaker on this?" O'Neill testified.
He said the company relied in large measure on contract lobbyist McClain for access to Madigan.
"Mr. McClain had free access in the speaker's suite," said O'Neill, who went on to connect the dots for prosecutors.
They drew a direct line between the legislation pushes and a contract entered into by ComEd, in October 2011, with Reyes Kurson, a law firm headed up by Victor Reyes, a political ally of Madigan's.
The contract was agreed to just as the General Assembly voted to override Gov. Pat Quinn's veto of ComEd's first big legislative push. When some years later O'Neill attempted to cut the law firm's hours, as yet another ComEd bill was getting ready to be voted on, ComEd's CEO Anne Pramaggiore received an email from McClain.
"I'm sure you know how valuable Victor is to our Friend," McClain said. "I know the drill and so do you. If you do not get involved and resolve this issue of 850 hours for his law firm per year then he will go to our Friend. Our Friend will call me and then I will call you. Is this a drill we must go through?"
Prosecutors said the "Friend" was Madigan.
Ultimately, the contract was renewed several months later, right around the same time ComEd's third major legislative push ended successfully in Springfield. O'Neill returns to the witness stand Tuesday, when he is expected to be extensively cross-examined by defense lawyers.
Jury selection continues Wednesday in the trial of former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse.
Potential jurors will be interviewed.
The process was expected to begin about 9 a.m.
Legal expert Chris Hotaling talks about the jury selection process at the Michael Madigan trial, including the progress made on day one, what attorneys on both sides are looking for in a juror and how quickly the case will get underway once a jury is seated.
Lawyers on Tuesday hammered out a few last-minute issues involving evidence and jury instructions before testimony begins.
But, the majority of their time was spent discussing a prosecution witness who filed a sexual harassment complaint in 2017 against a political operative in Madigan's organization, Kevin Quinn.
Quinn was eventually fired.
Prosecutors want to call Alaina Hampton to show a pattern of behavior.
Defense attorneys want limits on Hampton's testimony, saying it would be highly prejudicial and irrelevant to bring in sexual harassment claims.
Charged along with Madigan is former ComEd lobbyist Michael McClain.
A federal grand jury handed down a superseding indictment in October 2022, adding a new charge of conspiracy.
According to the indictment, his job was to conceal and hide the illegal operation of the enterprise shielding Madigan from the criminal activity.
Prosecutors say because Madigan's co-defendant McClain worked to funnel secret payments to help Quinn, it will help establish a pattern of concealed payments, which are part of the conspiracy alleged against Madigan.
The jury selection process started Tuesday in the trial of longtime former Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse.
Tuesday, prospective jurors filled out questionnaires, with the in-court portion of jury selection beginning on Wednesday.
The challenge for attorneys will be finding jurors who don't have biases for or against Madigan, given the high-profile nature of the case.
"There's going to be a lot of opinions. Some are going to be loose; some are going to be firmly held. And it's going to be very interesting to find out who's going to be able to take their opinions, set them aside, and who's going to not be able to do that, and hence, be unfair to serve on a jury," jury consultant Alan Tuerkheimer said.
The judge announced Tuesday afternoon that two jurors who were originally part of the jury pool have been dismissed due to unexplained issues.
