Blago Indictment: The Final Countdown

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Mar 30, 2009 4:20PM

Yesterday's news regarding former governor Rod Blagojevich's contribution "hit list" served as a stark reminder that the April 7 deadline to indict the ex-gov is fast approaching. Last week, the Sun-Times' tireless federal court reporter Natasha Korecki reported last week that prosecutors were going through more rounds of questioning with witnesses, trying to iron out the details. She also suggested that the indictment may come around Thursday as prosecutors would likely be denied any extension they ask for, especially since the April 7 deadline was a result of a previous extension request. Coincidentally, the corruption watchdog group Metropolitan Crime Commission released a report last week that ranked Illinois 19th overall in terms of corruption from 1998 til 2007, well behind 3rd place Louisiana with which Illinois shares more than a few connections (including, *ahem*, this Chicagoist editor).