Judge Kendall sided with prosecutors, who blasted the request for a postponement as a “last-ditch effort” by Burke to avoid being sentenced on Monday for racketeering, bribery and attempted extortion.
Kent Redfield
“The public, as well as the victims in this case, have a strong interest in finality and bringing the case to a close,” prosecutors wrote. “Unfounded, eleventh-hour requests for delay like this one contribute to a general sense that the wheels of justice turn too slowly.”
After the three-hour hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Virginia Kendall declined to issue a ruling immediately, instead promising a written order “shortly.”
“I’d like to think it will serve as a deterrent,” Elmhurst University professor Constance Mixon said. “But none of the other 37 convictions served as a deterrent. It ought to make people think twice. But I don’t know. I’d like to be optimistic.”
Credible cases will be pursued by the Illinois State Police Special Investigative Unit, a group of agents dedicated to investigating public corruption cases.
A major part of a $1.2 billion multi-pronged state tax relief program will be disbursed to 6 million Illinois households starting Monday through the next six to eight weeks. The amount you’ll get back depends on factors such as income, family size and home value.
It’s about the time of year when your mailbox may start to fill up with glossy brochures, pitching you not on a product — but on a candidate. What impact the ComEd bribery scandal might have on the coming election.
