His own legal funds are spent, and so former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich may have to make do with a scaled-down defense team at any retrial.
At a hearing Thursday, Judge James Zagel may try to pick a date for another trial after jurors deadlocked on 23 of 24 corruption charges last week. Jurors convicted him of lying to the FBI.
A new trial may be held in months, or not until next year.
The thornier issue is the makeup of Blagojevich's defense team. He had half a dozen attorneys at the first trial. But Zagel could rule that the broke former governor will now get only two, paid for by tax money.
Given how complex the case is, former federal prosecutor Phil Turner says Zagel may have to consider perceptions that Blagojevich would be in an unfair fight against the government.
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