The man who vowed to clean up the political system in Illinois goes on trial himself Thursday — on a string of corruption charges including the allegation that he sought political donations in exchange for an appointment for Barack Obama’s U.S. Senate seat.
Jury selection in the trial of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, the only governor in the Land of Lincoln ever removed from office through impeachment, is set to begin Thursday.
Prosecutors are confident in their case against the recent contestant on Donald Trump’s “Celebrity Apprentice” TV show, according to a report in Tuesday’s Chicago Tribune.
The prosecution’s case will feature secret recordings made in late 2008 of Blagojevich on the phone and in his political office, as well as testimony from as many as four key Blagojevich insiders, all but one of whom have been found guilty of charges connected to the investigation, the Tribune reported.
"That's the combination you look for as a prosecutor," Jeffrey Cramer, a former assistant U.S. attorney and now head of the corporate investigations firm Kroll in Chicago, told the Tribune. "That way you can tell the jury they can believe the cooperating witness because before he knew he was being taped or had any reason to say anything, you can hear him in his own words talking about these things."
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