Durbin to Bush: Let ex-Gov. George Ryan go home

Former Gov. George Ryan has served 13 months of a 61/2-year sentence for of steering lucrative taxpayer business to insiders who gave him and his family cash, gifts and free vacations - systemic corruption in two state offices over several years.

At 74 years old, that's enough, said U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin Monday. He is asking President George Bush to set Ryan free.

"Further imprisonment will not, in my opinion, serve the ends of justice," Durbin wrote in a letter Monday to Bush requesting a commutation.

The Springfield Democrat's move drew immediate criticism from the former federal prosecutor who put Ryan in prison, the chairman of the Illinois Republican Party and the attorney for a family whose six children were killed in a car accident allegedly stemming from Ryan's corruption.

Still at issue is whether Ryan is truly remorseful for his crimes.

If Bush moves to commute Ryan's sentence, the former governor would still be a felon on the books, but he would be let out of prison. It remains unclear where Bush stands on the issue.

Durbin, the second-most powerful Democrat in the U.S. Senate and a close friend to President-elect Barack Obama, won't face voters again until 2014, and he admits requesting freedom for Ryan has riled many. He described reaction to his decision as "overwhelmingly negative."

But Durbin said he feels Ryan has "paid the price" and should return to his wife, Lura Lynn Ryan. In his letter to President Bush, Durbin cited Lura Lynn Ryan's "frail health" and said she has "paid a heavy personal price."

But Patrick Collins, the former federal prosecutor who convicted Ryan in 2006 after a landmark trial, says scores of inmates have wrecked families back home.

"There are countless single mothers in federal jails," Collins pointed out. "If family distress and strain is the criteria, then a lot more folks would be commuted.

"I have to say as a taxpayer and citizen myself, I'm concerned the message a commutation decision will have on the corruption-fatigued state that we live in."

Durbin argued Ryan is sorry for his crimes, but many dispute that. Durbin cited Ryan's official petition to Bush for clemency in which the former governor expresses remorse.

Yet, Lura Lynn Ryan was quoted in the Chicago Sun-Times last week as saying, "His conscience is as clear as his mind."

And, "If he had it to do over - and I've heard him say this - he would govern the same way as he did before."

Willis family attorney Joe Power called the those statements troubling.

"He should finish his prison term, especially - based on what his wife said last week," Power said.

Power said the Willises are working through informal channels to urge Bush not to grant a pardon or commutation. He declined to elaborate.

The Willises lost six children in a fiery crash in 1994 when a taillight assembly fell off a semi-truck and hit the family's minivan. It was later determined the driver may have paid a bribe to get his Illinois license, a common practice under Ryan's administration.

Ryan killed an internal probe into the matter and fired the investigators.

Ryan's attorney, former Republican Illinois Gov. Jim Thompson, said Monday that his client is remorseful.

"There is no point in making him sit in jail until he is 80. He is not going to commit another crime," Thompson said.

He praised Durbin for the letter, calling him a "stand-up guy."

"There is no political benefit to Durbin in doing this, but he did the right thing," he said.

Meanwhile, Illinois Republican Chairman Andy McKenna took a shot at Durbin for supporting a commutation. He also chided Gov. Rod Blagojevich, a Chicago Democrat who is under federal investigation and who said last week that Bush should free Ryan.

"A commutation of (Gov.) Ryan's sentence sends the wrong message to not only those who betray the public trust but also to the honest, hardworking men and women of Illinois who expect public corruption will be punished to the fullest extent of the law," McKenna said in a statement.

Durbin described his decision to request a commutation for Ryan as one based on fairness, not on Ryan's former position as a governor.

When asked why Ryan should have a sentence commuted while others in similar situations sit in prison, Durbin said he is constantly working to correct "injustice" and will do the same for those who ask.

However, when pressed, Durbin said Ryan was not the victim of "injustice."

"I don't believe his conviction or incarceration would be an injustice. What I'm asking here for is compassion," Durbin said

Durbin also said he couldn't remember ever before sending a letter to a president requesting a commutation. Bush has broad power under the constitution to commute or pardon a sentence for any reason. Presidents typically wait until the end of their term in office to use the power. Durbin said he would not ask Obama to commute Ryan's sentence if Bush doesn't.

<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Related documents</h2> <ul class="morePdf"> <li><a href="/pdf/ryanletter.pdf">Durbin's letter to the White House </a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>