Ryan to remain behind bars

By Jamey Dunn

Former Gov. George Ryan lost his most recent bid for freedom despite pleas on his behalf from public figures and his ill wife.

Ryan’s case for throwing out some of his corruption convictions was based on a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that narrowed a category of fraud that requires public officials to provide "honest services" to the public and business executives to do the same for their shareholders.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruling was made on the case of Enron Chief Executive Officer Jeff Skilling.

U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer said that the Skilling ruling was based on a claim that the law was vague. However, she wrote in her ruling that Ryan knew his actions were illegal:

Ryan’s current challenge does not rest on vagueness grounds, and the court believes that, in the language of Skilling, Ryan clearly understood “what conduct was prohibited” and could not have been surprised that he was subject to prosecution. Ryan’s efforts to conceal his conduct from public scrutiny themselves demonstrate he knew it was improper. Indeed, long before George Ryan and his associates wrote this chapter in Illinois’s distressing history of public corruption, one of Ryan’s predecessors as Governor, Otto Kerner, was prosecuted under this same theory by an earlier United States Attorney.

According to Pallmeyer's ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court ruling limited prosecutions under the honest services law to “bribery and kickback schemes — the very theory of prosecution under which Ryan was convicted.”

Ryan’s lawyers also argued that instructions given to the jurors in his case violated the new interpretation of the law. Pallmeyer agreed on two of the directions but found the instructions to be “harmless.”

Ryan’s lawyers say the former governor’s wife, Lura Lynn Ryan, who has been diagnosed with cancer, may only have three to six months to live. Pallmeyer’s ruling alluded to calls from Lura Lynn and public figures, such as the Rev. Jesse Jackson, to allow Ryan to come home to his family:

This court takes no pleasure in depriving any defendant of his or her liberty. The court has had the painful duty to take such action in circumstances more compelling than these — where a young defendant with little education or resources is the sole support of small children, or is the only caregiver for a disabled relative, for example. Any sensitive judge realizes that a lengthy prison term effectively robs the convicted person of what we all value most: months and years with loved ones, some of whom will no longer be there when the sentence has been served. Mr. Ryan, like other convicted persons, undoubtedly wishes it were otherwise. His conduct has exacted a stiff penalty not only for himself but also for his family.

Ryan is serving a 6 1/2-year sentence in a federal prison at Terre Haute, Ind., where he has been since November 2007. His lawyers plan to appeal Pallmeyer's ruling.

Ryan asks judge to reconsider charges

By Jamey Dunn

Former Gov. George Ryan is seeking to have some of the charges from his 2006 conviction on corruption thrown out based on a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

The ruling scaled back a category of fraud, which requires public officials to provide “honest services.” Prosecutors now have to prove that an official received a bribe, kickback or some financial benefit when failing to provide honest service to the public. Prior to the court’s decision, prosecutors often used the statute to go after officials and executives who engaged in corrupt acts, such as lying to shareholders or not disclosing a conflict of interest, even if it did not result in a tangible benefit for the accused.

The ruling would not apply to all of the former governor’s crimes, but Ryan’s lawyers claim it would apply to mail fraud and racketeering convictions. They have asked the judge who presided over his trial to consider tossing these charges. His lawyers say the time he has served would satisfy his sentence for the remaining charges of lying to the FBI and tax violations. They asked that he be released on bail while U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer considers their request.

The Illinois Supreme Court upheld Ryan’s conviction in 2008. He is serving his 6 1/2-year sentence in a federal prison at Terre Haute, Ind., where he has been since November 2007. He is due for release in 2013. His requests for a pardon from former President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama proved unsuccessful.

Federal prosecutors tweaked some of the charges against former Gov. Rod Blagojevich shortly before his corruption trial to avoid the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on honest services having a possible impact on the case.

Supreme court says no pension for Ryan

By Jamey Dunn

Former Republican Gov. George Ryan will not receive any of his pension benefits from the time he served as an elected official in Illinois.

The Illinois Supreme Court ruled today that Ryan is not eligible for the benefits he earned as a Kankakee County official, state legislator and lieutenant governor. Ryan was convicted on corruption charges in 2006 and is serving his sentence in federal prison in Terre Haute, Ind. He is due for release in 2013.

Ryan was convicted of fraud, racketeering, lying to the FBI and tax violation. All these charges are based on crimes he committed as secretary of state and governor of Illinois. His lawsuit contended he should still receive pension funds from the offices he held that were not connected to his conviction. Five of the six Supreme Court Justices did not agree.

The court's opinion, written by Chief Justice Thomas Fitzgerald, a Democrat, said, “Although Ryan held multiple public offenses over the course of his time in the [pension] system, all of those offices were in service to a single public employer — the state of Illinois.”

The ruling is based on the notion that although Ryan may have had different jobs, he broke the law and betrayed the trust of a single employer. Just because he did not do that in every job he held, the court said it does not mean that employer should now have to pay him a pension. “As the victim’s of Ryan’s crimes, the taxpayers of the State of Illinois are under no obligation to now fund his retirement.”

Justice Anne Burke, a Democrat, wrote the only dissenting opinion. She said that the court contradicted earlier rulings that allowed officials to keep pensions from public jobs even after they had been convicted of wrongdoing in another office. Burke said that there must be a connection between the crime and the job to take pension benefits away.

“I understand the very human impulse to want to punish Ryan for his wrongdoings by depriving him of all of his pension benefits. However, while I sympathize with such impulses, our constitutional obligation is to follow the law, not our personal preferences,” Burke wrote in her opinion.

How Blagojevich fits into Illinois history

Given today's arrest of Gov. Rod Blagojevich, we thought it might be helpful to consider the context of his arrest. Here is a list of Illinois governors tainted by corruption. Complete with page numbers, the information is gathered by Beverley Scobell at Illinois Issues magazine and contained in The Illinois Governors: Mostly Good and Competent.

Only one governor, Len Small (1921-1929) was indicted while in office. In July 1921, he was indicted by the attorney general whose appropriation he had cut (page 196, new edition of Governors book). Charges were conspiracy and embezzlement of interest money during Small's second term as state treasurer. The criminal trial held in Waukegan in 1922 ended with an acquittal. One historian suggested jury tampering because after the trial, four jurors received state jobs.

Four governors were indicted after their terms ended:

• William Stratton (1953-1961) was indicted in 1964 for violating income tax laws. He was acquitted on tax evasion charges centered on campaign contributions (page 242)
• Otto Kerner (1961-1968) was convicted in 1973 of conspiracy, income tax evasion, mail fraud and making false statements on income tax returns. He served 7 months of a 3-year sentence, released on parole when lung cancer was diagnosed (page 250 of the new edition of Mostly Good).
• Dan Walker (1973-1977) was sentenced after pleading guilty to bank fraud, misapplication of bank funds and perjury in 1987. He served one and a half years of a 7-year sentence (page 272).
• George Ryan (1999-2003) was indicted the December following his term on charges of tax fraud, racketeering conspiracy and other and crimes related to his actions as secretary of state. He was convicted in 2006 and began serving a 6 1/2 year sentence in November 2007.

One other governor, Joel Matteson (1853-1857), would probably have been indicted under today's laws. In the last year of of his governorship, he engineered the Scrip Scandal (page 80, new edition), where he cashed again notes issued to build the I&M Canal that had been redeemed but not cancelled. The state Senate Revenue Committee indicted him in 1859, held a trial, convicted then reversed the decision and finally acquitted him. He finally repaid the state more than $250,000 ordered by Sangamon County Circuit Court in 1863.

George Ryan reports to jail Wednesday

Former Gov. George Ryan and friend Lawrence Warner are ordered to report to federal prison Wednesday after the U.S. Supreme Court denied their plea to remain free while trying to appeal their 2006 corruption conviction before the nation’s highest court. Ryan will start his 6 ½-year prison sentence in a federal facility near Oxford, Wis., while Warner will start his 3 ½-year sentence in Colorado. They both remained free for more than a year-and-a-half after being convicted for racketeering and fraud for using public office for private gain during Ryan’s years as secretary of state (1991 to 1999) and as governor (1999 to 2003).

One day prior, the U.S. Department of Justice’s solicitor general thought Ryan and Warner should not remain free pending an appeal to the Supreme Court.

Last month, a full panel of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed that they would not receive a retrial.

Former Gov. James Thompson, Ryan’s lawyer, responded to the Supreme Court's denial Tuesday in a Chicago press conference (posted on the Web). He said that the defense team is disappointed, but Ryan will report to jail as ordered.

“We knew the petition for bail was a long-shot,” Thompson said. “No Supreme Court justice has granted bail under the provisions of the Bail Reform Act for over 30 years. So, obviously, this was always a likely outcome.

“We are exerting, as we do for any client of Winston & Strawn, every effort on Gov. Ryan’s behalf. And we file an appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States on the merits of his conviction.”

Unlucky sevens

Former Gov. George Ryan could go to federal prison within seven days — correction: by November 7 — pursuant to a decision by the federal 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.

On Thursday, the full court affirmed that Ryan would not receive a retrial for his federal corruption conviction last April. Ryan requested the full panel of judges review an August ruling by a three-judge panel that determined he should not receive another trial. According to Thursday’s court order, even the three dissenting judges wrote that they agreed “the evidence of the defendants’ guilt was overwhelming.” But they disagreed over whether the management of the jury during the six-month trial harmed the case.

Ryan and his friend, Chicago businessman Larry Warner, were found guilty of using public office for private gain during Ryan’s years as secretary of state (1991 to 1999) and as governor (1999 to 2003). The Kankakee Republican has remained free during the appeals process and could ask to remain free if he takes his case to the last resort: the U.S. Supreme Court.

Back to the Capitol in 7
The Illinois House could vote on controversial mass transit funding just two days before threatened service cuts and fare increases.

Members will return to Springfield to conduct business one week from today. This comes after House Minority Leader Tom Cross met with House Speaker Michael Madigan in Chicago Wednesday to discuss ways to save mass transit from financial turmoil. But the leaders aren’t necessarily on the same page about whether a mass transit plan should rely on revenue from increased taxes, expanded gaming, other sources or all of the above.

The minority leader still prefers alternatives to tax increases. “Tom Cross and a majority of our caucus does not feel that now is the time to be increasing taxes on people, especially in light of what is being proposed by the Cook County board president and the mayor of Chicago,” said David Dring, Cross’ spokesman.

Alternatives include allowing a Chicago casino and the expansion of positions at existing casinos to help mass transit and to pay for a major capital construction plan. Dring said Cross also proposed diverting $300 million of the revenue from the state sales tax on gasoline to aid mass transit, and he’s proposing a menu of items to replace that money, such as increasing fees on auto titles and raising transit fares by 10 percent to 15 percent. “That is something we just thought about because that would be less money you would have to take from the sales tax on gas,” Dring said, adding a 15 percent fare increase would be “much more modest” than the fare increases planned by the Regional Transportation Authority if the agency doesn’t receive long-term state help by November 4.

Madigan, on the other hand, “did not seem to warm up to our idea of the sales tax on gas,” Dring said.

The speaker is open to a Chicago casino to pay for a road and school construction projects but only under certain circumstances, such as whether the revenue would stay in Chicago or be divvyed up all over the state, said Madigan spokesman, Steve Brown. However, the speaker still doesn’t want to rely on gaming legislation to save mass transit. “He has said that he doesn’t plan to hold transit riders hostage to the casino interests or the gambling interests,” Brown said.

In fact, Madigan still plans to push for a plan that would include a small sales tax increase in Chicago for the sake of mass transit. Lawmakers could vote for a second time on that measure next week. It previously fell short of the necessary votes in September.

Lawmakers were told to be prepared to work at the Capitol Thursday, November 1, Friday, November 2 and potentially Monday, November 5. And the governor repeated his statement Wednesday that he would call the General Assembly into another special session in mid-December to address the so-called 7 percent solution to Chicago-area property taxes. See the background here.

Scandal fatigue

A federal jury found former Gov. George Ryan, a Kankakee Republican, guilty of using public office for personal gain during his tenure as secretary of state and then as governor. Some think it’s a black eye for state government. Others think it’s a golden nugget of opportunity to kick Republicans while they’re down.

The political spin doesn’t do anything positive for voters when they enter the polls this November. “Neither party has any high ground in the upcoming election,” says House Minority Leader Tom Cross of Oswego, “and I don’t say that in a good way.”

Kent Redfield, political science professor at the University of Illinois at Springfield, said voters have “scandal fatigue” and are turned off by such mudslinging.

Yet, lo and behold, the Ryan verdict made conditions ripe for politicians to connect the dots between previous scandals and current candidates.

Right after the verdict was announced Monday afternoon, Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich issued a prepared statement. Although he didn’t mention state Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka as his GOP opponent, he painted the existing Republican officeholders as continuing Ryan’s corrupt administration.

Topinka’s prepared statement avoided mentioning Blagojevich, but said it’s time to restore public trust. “We can begin that process by ending pay-to-play politics, eliminating no-bid contracts, restricting the influence of lobbyists, and increasing transparency in political campaigns and the business of government. Most importantly, we can lead by example in promoting a culture in Illinois that celebrates accountability, openness, and the truth.”

Let’s see if anyone can actually do that, for the voters’ sakes.