Judge Zagel originally set the date for Oct. 6, but delayed it as he was also the presiding judge in the Cellini trial. Blagojevich attorney Sheldon Sorosky predicted Zagel would postpone the hearing out of fear it would taint the jury pool in the Cellini trial. more ›

Blagojevich attorney Sheldon Sorosky says reports of a prison term of up to 30 years is "harsh and cruel." more ›

Jury selection begins in the retrial of former Gov. Rod Balgojevich on corruption charges today. The adage plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose may very well describe Round 2. Let's take a look at what's changed and what hasn't, shall we? more ›

It looks as though Judge James Zagel isn't suffering fools gladly. The fool in this case being Rod Blagojevich. Zagel rejected the Blagojevich team's motion to delay the start of his retrial and jury selection will begin as planned next Wednesday. more ›

Judge James Zagel threw down the "call a spade a spade card" today and said the request from Rod Balgojevich's attorneys to cancel his retrial was nothing more than a publicity stunt intended to play the trial out in the court of public opinion. Well, Zagel didn't say that, in so many words. Zagel's exact words indicated the motion was "intended for an audience different than the court." But you get the gist. more ›

There's been a lot of rumor-swirling today after the jury reported to Judge Zagel that it had a question. Attorneys were due in court for a 2:30 p.m. hearing but not much else was known. Prior to that, though, attorneys had a closed-door meeting with Judge Zagel though we still have no idea what that was about. NBC 5's Ward Room reported that Judge Zagel requested Blago's presence in court today, though, signalling... well, we don't know what Earlier today, in spite of the rumors, Team Blago attorney Sheldon Sorosky indicated that, as far as he knew, the question was procedural and likely didn't have to do with a situation such as the jury reaching a verdict on some counts but remaining deadlocked on others. And ABC 7's Chuck Goudie has reported that sources tell him that there's no verdict but the judge does want both Blagojevich Brothers present for the jury's question. more ›

As attorneys for ex-gov Rod Blagojevich attempt to deal with a ridonkulous amount of evidence the prosecution plans to use, the defense also learned today how many attorney's they'd be allowed to use in the case (for now). U.S. District Judge James Zagel ruled Blago could hire three attorneys to take the case to trial, though his lead attorney Sheldon Sorosky asked for four trial lawyers and three additional lawyers to help tackle the evidence. [Sun-Times] more ›

Now that he's no longer Governor, Rod Blagojevich can turn his attention to his upcoming federal trial and, more importantly, finding a new lead attorney. Star defender Ed Genson quit Blago's legal team on the heels of Blago's media blitz, which Genson disapproved of. With that, all the ex-gov is left with is "longtime friend" Sheldon Sorosky. The father-son pair of Sam Adams Jr. and Sr. handles some of Blago's impeachment proceedings but have not yet committed to the federal portion of Blago's legal woes. The Sun-Times reports that Rod and Patti met with several prospective attorneys over the weekend in an attempt to fill out the roster. more ›