Bribery Trial Of 'ComEd Four' Linked To Madigan Delayed By Week

ILLINOIS — The trial of four ComEd executives and lobbyists who prosecutors say attempted to bribe former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan has been delayed by a week following a pretrial conference that was held on Tuesday in Chicago.

The trial, which was slated to begin on March 7, will now begin on March 14, although there was no definite reason for the judge ordering the delay, the Chicago Tribune reported. Jury selection was slated to begin on March 6 with opening statements scheduled to begin immediately after.

Madigan, who faces 22 criminal counts involving corruption, is scheduled to go to trial in 2024. Madigan stepped down as the Illinois State Representative representing Chicago's Southwest Side last February after holding the post for more than 50 years.

Next month’s trial involves power players with ties to Madigan who are known as the "ComEd Four." Michael McClain, a former state lawmaker and ComEd lobbyist who was one of Madigan's closest associates, faces charges, as does former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore, former ComEd lobbyist John Hooker and former ComEd consultant Jay Doherty. They’ve all pleaded not guilty.

In a filing last summer, prosecutors allege that Madigan told McClain that operatives in the bribery scheme had "made out like bandits."

In 2020, federal prosecutors and Exelon subsidiary ComEd reached a deferred prosecution agreement. As part of the agreement, the utility admitted it paid $1.3 million in jobs and contracts to associates of Madigan over nearly a decade to influence the former House speaker. ComEd agreed to pay $200 million in fines in connection with the corruption.

Prosecutors previously filed a 126-page legal brief that outlines the corruption and bribery charges against Madigan and the four defendants who will go on trial in a couple of weeks. Prosecutors allege that the four awarded jobs and contracts over an eight-year period in an effort to influence Madigan, who was then the Illinois House speaker.

The Tribune reported Tuesday that potential jurors will still report to the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse to fill out questionnaires that will allow for a jury pool to begin to be weeded out. The trial is expected to last two months.