Judge Won't Cut Short Rod Blagojevich's Prison Sentence

CHICAGO, IL — Imprisoned ex-governor Rod Blagojevich openly wept as his daughters testified in federal court Tuesday morning as his lawyers tried to bring him home.

Today was "decision day" for U.S. District Judge James Zagel, who in 2011 sent Blagojevich to prison for 14 years. How much punishment does he deserve?

His lawyers wanted a new sentence of five years.

Despite the disgraced governor's tears, pleas of his children, and testimony of fellow prisoners who seek out his counsel, the judge was not swayed Tuesday to change his original 14-year sentence. Blagojevich, who must serve 85 percent of his sentence, is eligible for two years of supervised release.

As Zagel announced his decision around noon, after a morning of testimony, Blagojevich, who appeared in court via streaming video, shook his head.

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In March, prosecutors asked Zagel to re-sentence Blagojevich after the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago in July 2015 tossed out five of his 18 convictions but affirmed the others.

Blagojevich was found guilty on 18 corruption charges — including an attempt to "sell" Barack Obama's U.S. Senate seat after his election to the presidency. Blagojevich was famously heard on a federal wiretap peppered with profane comments as he discussed the appointment he could make and what he could get in exchange.

"I've got this thing and it's f---ing golden."

Tuesday, as his lawyers sought a shorter sentence on the remaining corruption charges, they presented him as "a changed man."

"The arrogance and anger are no longer present in this man," attorney Leonard Goodman told Zagel. "This is a different man from the man that appeared before you in 2011."

On March 15, 2012, Blagojevich reported to federal prison in Colorado.

His daughters have grown up a lot in that time. Annie is now 13 and Amy is 20.

"I almost don't want to grow up because I want to wait for him to come home," Amy told the court. "He doesn’t want me to put my life on hold for him. In fact, he's willing to put his life on hold for me."

Chicago Sun-Times politics reporter Tina Sfondeles, reporting from the Dirksen Federal Building courtroom, observed:

The former governor’s two daughters, seated in the courtroom’s front row on either side of former First Lady Patti Blagojevich, sobbed into their mother’s shoulders when it became clear Zagel would show no mercy.

"He stole my childhood," Amy said, gesturing toward the bench, according to the Chicago Tribune's account. The judge had already left the courtroom.

Their father will not be eligible for release from prison until May 2024, according to the Bureau of Prisons. His youngest child, Annie, will also be an adult by that time.

Patti Blagojevich, their mother, asked the judge in a letter to "give Annie the chance for a normal happy childhood. ... I am pleading with you , indeed begging you, to please be merciful."

It's possible the Blagojevich legal team will appeal the sentence.

"I have to express our profound disappointment in rulings by Judge Zagel today," Patti Blagojevich said in the lobby of the federal building afterward. "We find his sentence unusually cruel and heartless and unfair.

"Somehow we will get through this. We love Rod, and we'll be here for him."

His wife said the family will continue to fight on his behalf, though she said she's losing faith in the legal system.

Blagojevich, a congressman from Chicago's North Side, was elected governor in 2002 — the first Democrat to hold the office in 30 years — and he won a second term before his corruption was exposed. He was impeached and removed from office in 2009 by a unanimous vote of the Senate.

He maintained his actions were nothing more than political horse trading.

In addition to trying to sell the U.S. Senate seat to the highest bidder, he also lied to the FBI, shook down the CEO of Children's Memorial Hospital for campaign donations, and tried to squeeze the racetrack industry for campaign money in exchange for gambling legislation.

He was convicted on those charges, and they were affirmed last year by the appeals court. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear his case.

"I regret those mistakes and judgments," Blagojevich told the court on Tuesday. "And I'm sorry. I wish I could find a way to turn the clock back."

While in prison, Blagojevich has become something of an inspiration and adviser to fellow inmates, according to his lawyers, who presented 141 letters from fellow convicts, from white-collar criminals to drug dealers and bank robbers. One letter states the ex-governor teaches them "not to be bitter towards the government."

They call him "The Gov."

Many Blagojevich supporters, however, are bitter toward the government and have long maintained that he was prosecuted for campaign fundraising activity that all politicians engage in. Had the Supreme Court taken up his case, a decision about his crimes could have had implications for politicians across the nation.

Before trial, Blagojevich described the prosecution as "a political lynch mob."

The federal prosecutor on Tuesday argued Blagojevich hasn't admitted to his "criminal conduct."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Riggs Bonamici said she doubts Blagojevich has been rehabilitated during his years behind bars because he hasn't fully accepted responsibility.