Michael Madigan rests his case against federal racketeering claims; closing arguments set for next week

Former Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan’s legal team rested their case Thursday, hoping to convince jurors that prosecutors overreached by bringing a historic racketeering conspiracy claim against the man once considered Illinois’ most powerful politician.

Madigan’s lawyers called 12 witnesses over seven days of testimony — the most called by a single defendant in the major corruption trials that have recently played out in Chicago. Most notable among the witnesses, of course, was Madigan himself.

Madigan testified for nearly 12 hours over four days.

The former speaker offered counter-narratives to the jury that likely would not have emerged as clearly had the Chicago Democrat not testified. But some jurors had skeptical looks on their faces as he tried to explain his dealings with former Ald. Danny Solis, and it’s not clear if the defense will be able to overcome the feds’ mountain of evidence.

Prosecutors also rested a short rebuttal case Thursday, meaning jurors have heard all of the evidence in the case. U.S. District Judge John Blakey told the panel that closing arguments would begin Wednesday and continue through the end of next week.

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