Defense attorneys try to undercut Fidel Marquez’s credibility after gun purchase attempt CHICAGO – Before the sun rose on a cold Wednesday morning in January 2019, Fidel Marquez agreed to a life-altering assignment as a cooperating witness in a criminal case the government was building against his colleagues at electric utility Commonwealth Edison and powerful…
The former chief lobbyist for ComEd has spent the last week telling a federal jury how he bent over backward to accommodate hiring requests from Michael Madigan.
McClain to Madigan’s son: ‘That’s what happens when you’re in this game’
Jury in ex-speaker’s bribery trial sees undercover videos made by prosecutors’ star witness
Former ComEd exec-turned-FBI mole testifies about no-work contracts for speaker’s allies CHICAGO – As chief lobbyist for electric utility Commonwealth Edison, Fidel Marquez had an expansive role that put him in charge of “approximately 130, 135 people.” But in June 2013, more than a year into that job, Marquez received an email about someone he…
Defense attorneys seek to undermine evidence that speaker knew of arrangement CHICAGO – It had been a tumultuous winter and spring for Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan as he was forced to fire or distance himself from several top allies, three of whom were accused of sexual harassment at the height of the #MeToo movement….
DANVILLE — People in prison can vote in Vermont, Maine and Washington, D.C. It’s a right that one incarcerated Illinois man would like to have. “The incarcerated community is probably the largest group of people who have the most skin in the game, yet we’re not acknowledged as stakeholders,” Raúl Dorado said. About 29,000 people are…
Jury hears another wiretap of Mike McClain referring to Madigan as ‘real client’ CHICAGO – Under the stained-glass dome of the Capitol in Springfield, lobbyists often wander the building, popping into a quiet corner to make a phone call or ducking into an empty committee room to send emails. Some veteran lobbyists have longstanding arrangements…
Mike McClain’s job recommendations weren’t bribes – or even improper, witness says CHICAGO – For decades, electric utility Commonwealth Edison renewed its contract with top Springfield lobbyist Mike McClain – in part because of his strategic abilities, but also because of his close relationship with longtime Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan. But it was…
In ex-speaker’s trial, former utility exec calls Madigan’s apparent involvement in contract talks ‘unusual CHICAGO – Commonwealth Edison’s top attorney was busy preparing for the General Assembly to take up major legislation the utility had spent months negotiating when ComEd’s top in-house lobbyist stopped by his office in late October 2011. A little over 13…
Prosecutors paint picture of Mike McClain’s extreme loyalty to ex-Illinois House speaker CHICAGO – By early 2019, Mike McClain had been a fixture around the Statehouse in Springfield for the better part of 50 years, first as a Democratic lawmaker in the 1970s and then for decades as a high-profile contract lobbyist. And though he…
Officers from Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri attended the service and participated in a procession for trooper Corey Thompsen.
CHAMPAIGN – Funeral arrangements for a fallen Illinois state trooper have been announced. The family of Corey Thompsen said in a news release shared by Illinois State Police that the visitation will be held October 26 from 1-5 p.m. at St. Joseph-Ogden High School in St. Joseph with a first responder walk through at 5…
First portion of Madigan corruption trial a repeat of 2023’s ‘ComEd Four’ case CHICAGO – In 2006, electric utility Commonwealth Edison was riding out the last year of a decadelong state-mandated rate freeze, which had put the company in “dire” financial straits. In a period when corporate profits climbed at record rates, ComEd was an…
The FBI “turned over heaven and earth” to find incriminating evidence against former Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan but ultimately found nothing more than “legal favors,” an attorney for Madigan’s longtime friend and confidant told jurors Tuesday. That won’t be enough to convict Michael McClain, the former lawmaker and lobbyist now on trial alongside Madigan, defense attorney John…