Is Blagojevich leaving prison? 6 things to know about appellate ruling
Former Gov. Rod Blagojevich got rare news from a federal appeals court when an opinion vacated five of the 18 corruption counts against him.
It was a complicated case. How did it come to this and what happens now for the disgraced Democrat?
Here's what the ruling says.
Is Blagojevich getting out of prison right now?
No.
A dozen of the corruption counts a jury found him guilty of were left in place by the appeals court ruling, and Patti Blagojevich called the ruling "very disappointing."
So he'll remain in a federal prison in Colorado.
"Because we have affirmed the convictions on most counts and concluded that the advisory sentencing range lies above 168 months, Blagojevich is not entitled to be released pending these further proceedings," the ruling reads.
Why did some counts get vacated?
The court ruled jurors weren't properly instructed on how to handle a specific instance of alleged corruption, where Blagojevich proposed to appoint Valerie Jarrett, President Barack Obama's adviser, to the new president's former Senate seat in exchange for a spot in Obama's cabinet.
The ruling says whether Blagojevich was doing some common wheeling and dealing to get a political gig is different from if he was asking for a private benefit. Jurors weren't instructed of that distinction, the court ruled.
"We conclude, however, that they are legally different: a proposal to trade one public act for another, a form of logrolling, is fundamentally unlike the swap of an official act for a private payment," the ruling says.
Now what?
The court ruled prosecutors could retry Blagojevich on the vacated counts. If not, he should be resentenced.
Because most of the counts against Blagojevich stand and Tuesday's ruling doesn't say his 14-year sentence was necessarily out of bounds, it's unclear if Blagojevich will get out of prison early.
"It is not possible to call 168 months unlawfully high for Blagojevich's crimes, but the district judge should consider on remand whether it is the most appropriate sentence," the ruling reads.
When will he get out otherwise?
The Federal Bureau of Prisons lists a May 23, 2024, release date for Blagojevich, prisoner 40892-424.
Focused in
The ruling didn't specifically reference every point in the Blagojevich scandal, like his ties to suburban businessmen or the Edward Hospital CEO who wore a wire to help expose a potential shakedown scheme.
It did make passing mention of Blagojevich's alleged plan to trade his signature on a law that would send money from casinos to horse racing tracks for campaign cash.
Comedy routine?
In its analysis of jury discussions, the ruling referred to the British comedy icons of Monty Python.
"Nudge, nudge, wink, wink, you know what I mean" can amount to extortion under the Hobbs Act, just as it can furnish the gist of a Monty Python sketch," it reads.