The Blagojevich verdict is in which is guilty on only one minor count. The other 23 counts are all deadlocked. We will carry the live feed if available. Blago guilty or not guilty? How many counts will be declared a mistrial? The world breathlessly awaits the jury verdict.
Apparently only two counts have been decided out of the 24 counts leveled at Blago. They are deadlocked on all of the others. The judge will have the option of accepting a partial verdict or demanding that the jury resume deliberations on the remaining counts. If the judge accepts only a partial verdict of guilty or not guilty, the government will have the option of retrying the case. In such a high profile case we do not expect U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald to throw in the towel.
Update: guilty on count 24, giving false statements to authorities based on lying in a March 15, 2005 interview with the federal grand jury. The is a relatively small felony offense which carries a maximum 5 year prison sentence although almost nobody gets that time.
This is the only count they reached a verdict on. All other counts are deadlocked.
Given only a partial verdict, it is highly likely that the jury has only decided on the less important counts. The big ones related to corruption and racketeering are undoubtedly hung in a mistrial. The biggest stumbling block for the trial is how jurors feel about talking rather than actions. Blagojevich did not sell the seat but the focus is on whether or not talking about it constitutes a crime.
Learn the guilty or not guilty verdict below when it is available and meanwhile reader comments are welcome. Searching for live feed now so we can hear the verdict together.
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August 17th, 2010 at 2:37 pm
Guilty AND mistrial!
August 17th, 2010 at 3:46 pm
He was found guilty of lying to the feds. His “punishment” should be the same as little Billy Clinton’s. Loss of his law license, if he has one, otherwise nothing.
August 17th, 2010 at 3:48 pm
Can you say Cory Voorhis?
August 17th, 2010 at 3:53 pm
Moonbats will elect him again.
August 17th, 2010 at 5:09 pm
Is Fitzgerald the worst prosecutor of all time? I’m not an attorney, but gee, I thought a basic premise in everything is that you promise LESS than you can deliver.
August 17th, 2010 at 5:18 pm
Us prosecutors gots to stop doing everything to win. It’s wrong.
August 17th, 2010 at 7:20 pm
Listening to those tapes reminded me of a used car sales manager I used to work under. I felt less dirty when I was selling dope.
August 17th, 2010 at 8:43 pm
Hondo, intersting solution. People should not be prosecuted alone for lying to the feds. If you have the right to not speak ill of yourself and 5th admendment rights not to incriminate yourself you should just claim that right and stop there and be respected. If your not supeoned by a court to testify, then I don’t see why the feds should get special powers unless a threat of imminent harm to somebody or some place. Why should they be allowed to go on fishing expeditions outside of the matter directly at hand. “did you take the money or not”. Not whether you like to vactation in your winabago. The governour is sort of a bad boy folk hero and people get what probably went on. We have all learned from this. I would say the jury nearly nullified his case for whatever reasons. For the feds to try him again strikes me as a type of double jeopardy. The jury has spoken and if the entire US government couldn’t put together a better case to convince them otherwise then that should be it. Isn’t it a bigger crime for a politician to start a war of opportunity where much life is lost? But no, nobody wants to talk about that. I would say, fairly and squarely the US prosecutor lost the vast majority of the case, the actual crimes. To use the technicality of lying to the feds to imprison him is pathetic and doesn’t strike me as fair play or justice at all.
August 17th, 2010 at 9:58 pm
Furthermore, I would say we the people should not be afraid of our Federal Government or what we may way to agents as they work for us and there has to be a give and take in any relationship. Here the Federal government did its job by trying the case with one of its able-ist prosecutors and a big budget. The jury made its decision which tells us there are real problems with government, such that, the citizens nullified much of “its complaint” against this one “character”. In fact, rather than determining all that occured as the sole responsiblity of one “character” (American law so loves to blame just one person as the responsible party) they saw “multiple players” and just how dysfunctional it all was. We all knew that before going into this trial. So they have spoken. To think that the prosecutorial ego can simply spend millions more of the taxpayers limited moneys trying to retry it is I think as wrong as anything Blago is said to have done. I am also not sure how a mistrail can be declared, for if the jury cannot come to a verdict, shouldn’t that be put in the “not guilty” box? We need to find ways to minimize the excessive criminalizing of more and more americans if we want a balanced budget. This stuff costs big big money to try, again and again! They can revoke his law license, bar him from public office, as things stand now and I think that speaks volumes.
August 18th, 2010 at 4:51 am
Why is it that it seems all they ever prove after these yearlong multi-million dollar trials is lying to the feds?
August 18th, 2010 at 5:08 am
Actually, if you read the “rest of the story” the jury was 11-1 for conviction in most of the counts. One nut job held out for acquittal. Now there are rumors of pay offs and promises to that juror. I do not know if any of that is true. I have always wondered why it has to be unanimous. I know that is the system but doesn’t that give the upper hand to the defense? The way I look at it, they only have to convince 1 person, the prosecution has to convince 12.
I think he will be retried on the most serious charges.
Just my two cents worth
August 18th, 2010 at 5:16 am
It’s supposed to be a stone b*tch to get a conviction. It’s one of the checks and balances on the governments power.
If I was to pick – I’d hold off on pushing for his trial and keep Maxine and Charley’s feet in the fire.
August 18th, 2010 at 1:58 pm
Don’t blame the juror as automatically being a “nut-job” or automatically involved in untoward activiities. There were real problems in the case and the prosecutor failed to make his case frankly. No body doubts Blago was up to things, but apparently part of the gang who couldn’t shoot straight in that he never got anything he was ranting about as governor. Bad intentions, but an inability toleverage his position for real. So he is guilty of spouting off, but is that a crime. The jury didn’t think so. I don’t think we should spend another 02-30 million dollars of good money and torment another jury. The prosecutor had one jury. It seems double jeopardy to me to retry him, and certainly not fair finanically to force him to pay for a second defense against the governments endless pockets of our money. He can still be sentenced on the federal charge and then there is always community service which is all he should probably get after all this time. Personally I don’t think anyone should go to prison simply based on what they said, or their intent, unless an immediate and imminent danger to others. He must be the most unsuccessful conspiracist on record. I also think there is a little jury nullification going on over how the federal government handled this case in all its zeal.