Crime & Law

A ‘Malignant Tumor’: Madigan Defense Takes Aim at Disgraced Ex-Ald. Danny Solis in Closing Arguments

A “malignant tumor.” A “stage actor.” A “walking crime wave.” That’s how powerful Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan’s legal team refers to disgraced former Chicago Ald. Danny Solis who sought to “trick” the speaker into discussing illicit arrangements.

Madigan’s defense attorney Dan Collins told jurors Monday that Solis, the longtime 25th Ward alderperson turned government mole, carried out carefully orchestrated productions directed by federal investigators.

“As you evaluate the circumstances,” Collins said, “you’ve got to understand that these are staged circumstances.”

Collins’ remarks came on the fourth day of closing arguments in Madigan’s landmark corruption trial at the Dirksen Federal Building in downtown Chicago.

Madigan and his longtime friend and ally Michael McClain face charges of racketeering, federal program bribery and wire fraud. Madigan is also accused of attempted extortion. Both men have pleaded not guilty.

The former speaker is accused of orchestrating five separate bribery and corruption schemes. Prosecutors claim the pair had three goals: to preserve and enhance Madigan’s power, to reward loyal allies and associates, and to generate income through illegal activity.

Collins spent parts of two days attempting to tear down each of those alleged schemes, arguing Madigan never solicited, nor received, any bribes related to his official office or his private law firm.

But Collins also zeroed in on Solis, whose secretly recorded conversations with Madigan resulted in 16 of the 23 charges in this case.

“Make no mistake,” Collins said, “Danny Solis is a malignant tumor at the heart of this case.”

Solis and his recordings were involved in three of the five schemes.

Solis, who was himself charged with bribery, testified at trial under a deferred prosecution agreement that will see that charge dropped later this year. Prosecutors have claimed Madigan would reach out to Solis and use the alderperson’s official position to gain private benefits for himself by setting up meetings with developers so he could pitch them on his private law firm.

Solis acknowledged he fed Madigan false information at the FBI’s behest in order to see how Madigan would respond.

The government claimed Solis acted as nothing more than a “walking microphone,” but Collins said he was instead an “actor” carrying out “stage productions” centered on false information in an attempt to get Madigan to bite on a bribery scheme.

Collins further claimed the former alderperson during his federal cooperation lied to the government to cover up his alleged tax crimes and cannot be trusted.

“His credibility is incredibly important here,” Collins said, “and he has none.”

As he concluded his remarks Monday afternoon, Collins denied that Madigan was part of any racketeering enterprise, but was instead simply a “public official who did his best.”

“Mike got tricked by Danny Solis,” Collins said. “Nothing more to it.” 

ComEd Bribery Allegations

The most extensive of the government’s allegations surrounded utility giant Commonwealth Edison, whose officials allegedly conspired to bribe the speaker in order to get his sign-off on critical energy legislation.

Madigan, who testified in his own defense, previously told jurors he hadn’t trusted ComEd because he felt the company had been deceitful after the state of Illinois deregulated electric utilities in the 1990s. Prosecutors have claimed this is part of the reason why ComEd officials ultimately decided to try to bribe Madigan years later to get him on board with their legislation.

But Collins noted that ComEd had already been successful in getting separate legislation passed in 2007 and again in 2009. He told jurors the idea that the utility company couldn’t get any bills passed without a bribe is a “non-starter.”

“(Bribery) was not some necessary thing for them to move what they wanted,” Collins said.

During negotiations over the “Smart Grid” bill passed in 2011 — which codified the formula rate for ComEd — Collins pointed out that Madigan instructed his legal counsel to go over the legislation with a fine-tooth comb and include language to protect customers and ensure ComEd would be required to follow through on its promises.

The speaker’s staff also added in sunset provisions that would put a deadline on ComEd’s rate authority if the company failed to honor its word.

But if Madigan was in ComEd’s pocket, Collins asked, then “Why the intense pushback on ComEd? Why the intense negotiations?”

“ComEd,” he said, “did not get what they wanted. They did not.”

During negotiations for the Future Energy Jobs Act, or FEJA — another crucial piece of legislation for ComEd — the utility had pushed to get new microgrids added in. But the bill eventually passed without their inclusion.

“If Mike Madigan was being bribed in 2016, how the hell does that happen?” Collins said.

Collins on Monday repeatedly sought to downplay Madigan’s power and distance his client from his co-defendant.

“It’s not like this is a one-man show down there in Springfield,” Collins said in regard to his client’s ability to call or kill legislation in the House. “It’s so impractical to think that one man does that.”

After FEJA passed, McClain later bragged in an email that Madigan had put up 47 votes to get FEJA passed, but Collins claimed McClain was “exaggerating” the speaker’s importance and pointed out that there weren’t even 47 Democrats who voted in favor of the legislation.

Madigan and McClain also allegedly pressured ComEd to sign the Reyes Kurson law firm to a contract for legal work because one of its partners — Victor Reyes — was a major Democratic fundraiser in Illinois.

But Collins argued that it was McClain who was pushing for this, claiming there’s no direct evidence showing that contract came in exchange for any official action from Madigan and that it was McClain alone who was trying to secure a deal by “invoking the name of the principal.”

As for the four subcontractors ComEd hired, allegedly as a bribe to Madigan, Collins reiterated the speaker’s own words in denying that he had any knowledge they’d been given what were essentially no-work jobs.

He told jurors they each came to Madigan for help finding a job, and that Madigan simply passed their names over to McClain for assistance.

“Mike makes the recommendation,” Collins said, “he doesn’t know what happens there after.”

Madigan on the witness stand testified he became “angry” when learning after the fact that the four had not truly been working. Collins also added that Madigan never took any official action in exchange for those hires.

Government prosecutors concluded their own closing arguments Friday, while McClain’s defense team is slated to begin their arguments Tuesday morning. The government will then present its rebuttal remarks before jury deliberations begin.

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