Judge Defends Light "Fast Eddie" Sentence

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Mar 3, 2009 7:45PM

U.S. District Judge Milton Shadur has come under fire from some for his seemingly light sentence of Edward "Fast Eddie" Vrdolyak (pictured right). With a sentence of up to several years possible, Judge Shadur sentenced Vrdolyak to five years probation and a $50,000 fine, angering those who think Vrdolyak should do jail time. Today, Judge Shadur defended his sentence.

Shadur said his sentence was supported by federal sentencing guidelines because he did not find that the school - Rosalind Franklin University - suffered any real loss in the scheme.

Vrdolyak pumped up the sale price to market value, and since his guilty plea last year, he had assigned his fee back to the school. Shadur said the lack of any loss in the case sent federal guidelines plummeting and supported a minimum sentence of probation.

Prosecutors had pointed to Vrdolyak's long history as a Chicago insider in seeking prison, but Shadur said he punished Vrdolyak for only his misconduct in a private fraud scheme, not public corruption.

For their part, the school claims they sustained a loss because of the deal, claiming that based on market conditions at the time of the sale, it could have sold for upwards of $21 million rather than the $15 million deal Stuart Levine pressured the board into. Judge Shadur said he received many letters from the public in support of Vrdolyak and even considered making them public but ultimately decided against it out of concerns for the privacy of those who wrote the letters.