Seldom do sequels surpass their predecessor. And so it goes for the Rod Blagojevich retrial. more ›

We've had weekend plans go pear-shaped on us a few times before, for a number of reasons - people drop out, car gets a flat, work intervenes, and so on. If we knew we had to get our legal ducks in a row in front of a Federal judge before being allowed to skip town, however, we might very well square away a few details before trying to make that trip. more ›

When you're looking at the ballot on Nov. 2 you'll see a lot of unfamiliar names that were never mentioned by the media. Those candidates are judges, and Illinois judges are the second highest paid in the country. more ›

Hard as it is to believe, we're officially into October now and thus it's time to start planning our Halloween costumes. One shop has a pretty hair-raising suggestion that might or might not be all the rage this holiday: Blago. That's right, our former governor's visage may be a popular - and no less scary - option this holiday for the politically savvy party-goer. Fantasy Costumes had the masks made after apparently fielding tons of requests. The store's assistant manager Cathy Bunger told the Sun-Times, "We kept getting calls and calls and calls, and nobody had it; so we made something up." Of course, at a steep cost of $49, it'd better come with a Senate seat attached. But don't worry: Blago doesn't get a cut of any of the profits. more ›

• Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas Fitzgerald is reportedly stepping down due to a battle with Parkinson's.
• No surprise here: Blago's attorney is looking to have the lone conviction against the ex-gov overturned.
• The Chicago Police Union has responded to Supt. Jody Weis' letter from yesterday with a letter of their own calling on him to resign.

That's right, he's still looming out there, the great-haired one, biding his time while we crap ourselves about who will be our next mayor, there's still the matter of our former governor. There was a hearing today to set a few things for the Blagojevich retrial, expected to kick off early next year. First of all, names of the jurors won't be released until 24 hours after the verdict, a decision the media has until November 1 to appeal. Judge Zagel also said the new questionnaire heading out to potential jurors will tell them to expect the retrial to last 10 to 11 weeks, shorter than the expected four months of the first trial. He also set a November 15 deadline for the prosecution to file any changes to their "road map" and an October 1 deadline for any shuffling of defense attorneys. A source told Chicago Mag's Carol Felsenthal that the father-son duo of Sam Adam Sr. and Jr. might be split up as Sr. wants to stay on board while Jr. wants out. There's also talk Blago might try to qualify as an "indigent defendant" which qualifies him for taxpayer-funded attorneys though Judge Zagel has indicated if Blago winds up with such a defense, he'll be limited to two attorneys. more ›

Frank Schmidt, one-time owner of a Joliet landfill that was at the center of an epic feud between Chicago Ald. Dick Mell and former Governor Rod Blagjoevich, has been charged with federal tax evasion. According to federal authorities, Schmidt has been charged with five counts of tax evasion for failing to pay $2 million in tax on $11 million of income. Schmidt is expected to plead guilty. more ›

Mark your calendars, folks: the Blago retrial will kick off the week of January 4, 2011, well after the general election tomfoolery has settled down. Exactly which day the trial will be announced at a later date. Team Blago attorney Sam Adam Sr disputed reports he and his son had withdrawn from the case; Zagel issued a deadline of October 1 for attorneys to withdraw. Of course, Blago will be going it alone this time around. more ›

It was only a matter of time but with the verdict in, Blago has become the next big story to receive the bizarre CGI animated treatment. And what a delight it is. The hair, the hairbrush, Obama's cameo, Oprah, the holdout juror... it's one glorious drug trip dream that carries the surreal aspect that the real-life trial itself had. While Blago began a new media blitz today, this is the only video we'll be watching of him today. more ›

• Former Congressman Dan Rostenkowski, who passed away last week, was laid to rest earlier today.
• Authorities and BP are investigating a report of a small oil leak in Hammond, Indiana.
• Benjamin Johnson, already serving 80 years for rape, was sentenced to an additional 30 years for another rape.

While jurors continue to deliberate with no sign of a verdict to be reached this week, they may wind up tasked with a little extra work once they do reach their decision. A hearing was held yesterday at which federal prosecutors said they intend to go after a few Blago assets if the verdict is guilty. Specifically, the feds will try to take control of both the Blagojevich home here in Chicago as well as the family's D.C. condo. more ›

As jury deliberations are well into their fifth day, there's still plenty to speculate about even though we have no clue what's actually happening behind those closed doors. So what better way to spend our Blago-less days than placing bets on things like the expected verdict? You've already placed your guess in our Verdict pool but what other options are there? The Sun-Times took a quick look at a few betting sites. Irish site Intrade reported an 80 percent chance of conviction while BetUS says 100-1 odds on acquittal. So even the gamblers don't like his chances. One fun note: BetUS also has 13-1 odds that Blago's next move involves motivational speaking. Cue the "in a van down by the river" jokes. more ›

Have you weighed in yet with your guesses as to when a jury will return a verdict in the Blago Trial? Put on your thinking cap and enter a guess. The jury began deliberations just before noon yesterday and returned today at 9 a.m. for their first full day. They'll deliberate Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., for as long as it takes to reach a verdict. Which might be a while given the amount of information they have to work through. While we might not know the identities of the jurors deciding the fate of the Blago Brothers, there is information out there about them. more ›

While yesterday afternoon's legal fireworks were the highlight of courtroom proceedings in the Blagojevich trial, Phil Rogers over at NBC5 brings us a bit of lunacy-related info that otherwise got overlooked. Everyone in the public eye gets their share of letters from people who could generously be called cuckoo for cocoa puffs, and yesterday Judge Zagel shared some of his. more ›

With closing arguments underway in the Blagojevich trial, we couldn't help but notice the last minute ploy by the Blagos, similar to any number of family sitcoms over the years: when in doubt, trot out the kids. Daughters Annie and Amy accompanied Ma and Pa Blagojevich to the courthouse today, their first appearance at the trial. Because nothing says "good parenting" like letting your kids give jurors the "please don't take away my daddy!" puppy dog eyes before the decide his fate. more ›

With federal prosecutors wrapping up their case against our ex-governor this week, Blago is getting attacked on another front, this time by a well-known political operative. Rick Reed, the man responsible for the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth attack ads against Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry during the 2004 election, is helping to fund a new website that tries to connect Blago to current president Barack Obama. The site, Obama & Blago, is actually the brainchild of former Jim Ryan staffers Dan Curry and John Pearman (though Curry told Chicago News Cooperative that Ryan himself is in no way involved with the site. The site's funding comes from Reed's the Foundation for a Secure and Prosperous America, a 501(c)3 organization. more ›

We couldn't resist posting this now instead of saving it for tomorrow's recap: during testimony today, former Deputy Governor Robert Greenlee testified about Blago's less than frequent office appearances and even Rod's tendency to duck out and hide from advisers... in an office bathroom. Greenlee testified today that Rod's presence in his office was as low as two-to-eight hours a week. From Natasha Korecki at the Sun-Times: more ›

One of the jurors in the Blago Trial was dismissed this morning by Judge Zagel due to the critical illness of a parent and will be replaced by one of the six alternates. The trial - and Blago's ego - has continued unabated. more ›

The Blago Trial gets underway once more today after a four-day break and we thought we'd get back into the swing of things with this animated clip which uses actual wiretap excerpts from the trial (so language is NSFW). The theme? A dreaming Blagojevich playing kickball which we now know from personal experience is something the ex-gov does like to dabble in with his spare time. more ›

We've know that there have been ties between former governor Rod Blagojevich and current NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg - such as Bradley Tusk who used to be Blago's Deputy Gov and then a special assistant to Bloomberg and testified in the Blago trial yesterday. The Mothership Gothamist pointed us to another connection, specifically photos of Mayor Bloomberg and then-Governor Blagojevich hobnobbing in 2003 as the two rallied together, calling on the FDA to allow the import of prescription drugs from Canada. No word if this was after the 2003 flight to NYC during which Blago allegedly discussed his Presidential aspirations. more ›

Via our hyperlocal homepieces at the Center Square Journal comes this similarly specific yup-hop jam by The Pawns about the neighborhood some of us call home. In the tradition of "Straight Outta Compton," "Empire State of Mind," Wesley Willis' "Rock and Roll McDonalds"* and other seminal jams about locations comes "Rollin' in the 2-5." The 2-5 refers to the 60625 area code of the Lincoln Square neighborhood and is apparently known for strollers, yuppies, German bars and being the home of the Blagojevich family, all of which are referenced in this instant classic for the Rockwell Gardens set. more ›

• A new report outlines how police missed crucial clues in the first hours of the Riley Fox investigation.
• Prosecutors in former governor Rod Blagojevich's trial want the ex-gov to quit yapping about what he thinks of the trial. Inherit the Windbag, indeed.
• Kicking a President while his hands are full, GOP gubernatorial candidate Bill Brady says he could beat Obama in an election right now. Obama has yet to respond with a challenge to meet Brady at the flag pole after school or as to whose dad could beat up the other dads.

Day Five of the Blagojevich trial saw the beginning of witness testimony against the former governor. First up, FBI Agent Daniel Cain explained the process behind bugging Blagojevich and others. The investigation began, according to Cain, after someone filed a report about extortion for a state board appointment, which led to Rezko, and then more information came in from lobbyist John Wyma. The Tribune's Bob Secter called Cain, "cool and deliberate and unassuming," as he methodically described the ins-and-outs of the process of monitoring 8 different phones and two bugs between October 22, 2008 and December 9, 2008. Of the 5,000 calls the FBI monitored, Cain said around 1,100 were relevant to the case. Aaron Goldstein cross-examined Cain, focusing on how the FBI must stop monitoring conversations that have no relevance to the case, emphasizing that investigators might have missed some piece of conversation that could have helped exonerate Blagojevich. more ›

Local artist Jeremy Scheuch sent us this shot of his brand new tattoo and we're just floored. He was inked last night by Bethany Cisco and man oh man do we admire this rendition of Chicago style! more ›

An interesting play was made by Blago's defense team as opening statements were scheduled to get underway this morning. In a last-minute, last gasp attempt to get the case thrown out, Team Blago claims that the FBI tapes that caught Blago discussing deals were just talk and that the trial is a violation of his First Amendment rights: "In this case, the defendant was engaged in political speech and expression. The government alleges that the political process in which he was engaged was criminal. This is a violation of the defendant's rights of freedom of speech and expression afforded him under the United States constitution." It's highly doubtful anything will come of it, though the Trib's Jeff Coen says we should look for Blago's lawyers to use the same line of thinking in their opening statements. more ›

And so we're here. After a surreal, 19-month long roller coaster ride of insanity, the main event is upon us: the Blagojevich Trial. Sure, there's plenty of court action to talk about and more than worth following: the ongoing Jon Burge trial and the approaching Drew Peterson murder trial, to name two. But both will take a back seat to the three-ring circus that is the federal corruption trial of Rod Blagojevich. And, to be honest, there have been so many twists and turns - Christopher Kelly's suicide, Rod's Celebrity Apprentice stint, the Esquire story - that we'd understand if you've had a hard time following the case. Remember the morning of his arrest and the original indictment? It seems like so long ago. Just this past December, Karl valiantly recapped some of the twists and turns that took place in that first since Blago's arrest. Blago's own attorney declared him a "celebrity idiot" which inspired Karl to break into song. And did we mention the actor/mystery-writer judge that's presiding over the case? more ›

President Obama, Sen. Dick Durbin, Sen. Harry Reid, and now Rahm Emanuel. It's a who's-who of Democrat Power Elite. It's also the list of people subpoenaed by ex-governor Rod Blagojevich. Blago's lawyer Shelly Sorosky confirmed to the Sun-Times that White House Chief-of-Staff Rahm Emanuel has been subpoenaed as has Senior White House Advisor Valerie Jarrett. more ›

With his federal corruption trial slated to start, well, tomorrow (more on that later), ex-governor Rod Blagojevich has had his weekly Sunday radio show pulled from the WLS airwaves for the duration of the trial. Operations Director Drew Hayes said, "Out of respect for the legal process, WLS radio is putting the Rod Blagojevich Show on 'hiatus' effective immediately. After the trial has concluded, we will review the status of the program." But, according to Hayes, that won't stop Blagojevich from making appearances on the "Don Wade & Roma" show, as he did this morning. Well, that's a relief. more ›

Have a safe and happy holiday weekend and check back as we'll still be here updating all weekend. more ›

• (Retiring) Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens has given federal prosecutors a week to respond to the Team Blago request to delay the start of the former governor's trial (which also includes his brother Rob).
• Update to the shooting death of Chicago Police officer Thomas Wortham IV: it might have all been over a dare.
• While it looks like Thomson Correctional Center is still being sold to the feds, it's looking less likely that Guantanamo prisoners will wind up there.