AP votes Blagojevich verdict top Illinois story of 2010
SPRINGFIELD — The highly anticipated trial of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich — with its lone guilty verdict that set up a repeat trial in the coming year — was 2010's top news story in Illinois, according to members of The Associated Press and the wire service's staff. The ongoing saga over a shortage of money to run state government came in second.
Here are the top 10 stories of 2010:
1. Blagojevich guilty of one crime: The trial of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, which had tongues wagging all summer, resulted in one guilty verdict in August, of lying to the FBI. The jury split on 23 other counts, including various allegations surrounding allegations he tried to sell President Barack Obama's former U.S. Senate seat for a high-paying job or campaign cash. Federal prosecutors will try again to persuade a jury to convict the Democrat on the remaining counts in a retrial set for April.
2. Bleak state budget: The state budget, with dropping revenues, past-due bills and one of the most severely underfunded pension systems in the nation, made the Top 10 list for a second year in a row, after landing in the No. 7 spot last year. Gov. Pat Quinn failed again this year to get even a scaled-back income tax increase, state vendors are waiting months for payment on backlogged bills and retirement programs are selling portions of their investment portfolios to keep paying retirees, while experts estimate the deficit will top $15 billion by the end of the fiscal year.
3. Daley to retire: Richard M. Daley broke his father's record as longest-serving mayor in Chicago history, but won't stick around much longer. The second half of a family dynasty that ruled city hall for all but 13 years since 1955, Daley announced in September he would not seek a seventh term, setting off a scramble to fill a political void. So far, polls have former Obama chief of staff Rahm Emanuel in the lead.
4. Quin survives: The longtime Democratic outsider who stepped into the governor's job when Blagojevich was impeached and ousted in January 2009, Quinn had an uphill trek to secure a term as governor in his own right. He faced an intraparty fight for the nomination last winter with Comptroller Dan Hynes, who came close to toppling him. Then, in a Republican year when Democratic incumbents fared poorly around the nation, Quinn eked out a victory over conservative Republican senator Bill Brady.
5. State economy: Unemployment in Illinois peaked at 11.5 percent in March and had dropped to 9.6 percent by November, but the state continued to respond slowly to the recession that began in 2008. The number of new businesses starting and building permits issued remained stagnant at year's end, although state officials said the falling unemployment rate even with more people seeking work is an encouraging sign.
6. Tie: Civil unions approved and Blackhawks win cup: Gay-rights advocates cheered the passage in December of civil unions legislation, which would allow unmarried, committed couples to enjoy the same rights and privileges as married couples, such as deciding medical treatment options for a partner. Gov. Quinn plans to sign the bill in the new year. Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and the Chicago Blackhawks beat Philadelphia in six games, ending the longest active championship drought in the National Hockey League with Chicago's first Stanley Cup since 1961.
7. GOP takes Obama's seat: Democrats suffered an embarrassment when they lost Obama's former Senate seat to U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, a moderate Republican who overcame exaggerations in his military record to top state Treasurer and Obama friend Alexi Giannoulias. Giannoulias was up against a GOP wave and his own problems about how much involvement he had as a former loan officer for his family's bank, which failed this year.
8. Prisoners let go early: Quinn scrambled to explain how his administration let more than 1,700 prisoners — hundreds of them violent offenders — out of prison within days in a secret early release program revealed by The Associated Press. The governor quickly shut down the program and signed into law a requirement that prisoners spend at least 60 days in prison before getting good-conduct credit.
9. Asian carp: Environmentalists and other Great Lakes states responded with alarm after revelations the destructive Asian carp had migrated to within 25 miles of Lake Michigan, although a federal judge turned down a plea by five nearby states to order the closure of Chicago shipping locks to keep the voracious species out of the lakes. The federal government unveiled a $78.5 million strategy in February to halt the carp's spread, which some fear could destroy the Great Lakes $7 billion fishing industry.
10. Chicago gun ban overturned: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that the Second Amendment gives citizens the right to own handguns anywhere they live, essentially overturning handgun bans in Chicago and suburban Oak Park. The City Council responded by passing one of the nation's strictest possession ordinances, restricting how people may keep their guns.
Other votes for top news stories went to the suicide of former Metra train service chief Phil Pagano, who allegedly embezzled nearly $500,000 from the agency; the on-again, off-again roller coaster of the FutureGen clean-coal experiment; the fatal shootings of six Chicago police officers, including two within days of each other; the death of Chicago Cubs legendary third baseman, Ron Santo; and Michael Hogan's first year as University of Illinois president.