Gov. Blagojevich on his own for legal bills
Taxpayers will not have to foot the bill to defend Gov. Rod Blagojevich against criminal charges or moves to oust him from office, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said Thursday.
"It is absurd to suggest that taxpayers must finance the defense of a criminal action against Governor Blagojevich who is accused of corruptly betraying the public trust for personal and financial gain," Madigan said in a letter to defense attorney Ed Genson.
Genson submitted a letter to Madigan Wednesday specifically outlining the cases against the governor and requesting the state pay for his defense in those cases.
Genson later claimed he didn't expect taxpayers to fund his criminal defense, only his defense against ongoing impeachment proceedings.
The letter said, "we are respectfully requesting you appoint counsel of Governor Blagojevich's choice to represent him in the foregoing matters." The letter details all the cases against the governor, including federal charges he tried to sell a U.S. Senate seat and state business for personal gain.
Madigan says her office has no duty to defend officials on criminal charges or on impeachment grounds, because the charges by lawmakers don't involve the governor's official actions.
Meanwhile, Genson has told reporters federal authorities have indicated they want to freeze the governor's campaign fund, which was last reported to have more than $3 million. That money would likely be used for Blagojevich's defense, raising questions about how Blagojevich will be able to fund his high-profile defense.
Blagojevich spent yet another day Thursday dodging questions about his arrest last week on sweeping corruption charges. Despite saying Wednesday he would talk to the public by Thursday, Blagojevich didn't emerge from his office or Chicago home to personally defend himself.
Blagojevich spokesman Lucio Guerrero said the governor could talk today or next week.
The governor spent Thursday in his downtown office. He went through about 60 clemency petitions, approving some and rejecting others, Guerrero said. No further information was available on the petitions he approved or rejected.
Daily Herald news services contributed to this report.
<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Video</h2> <ul class="video"> <li><a href="javascript:void(window.open('http://video.ap.org/?t=By%20Section/U.S.&g=1217dv_pol_il_blagojevich&f=ILARL','_blank','width=788,height=598,status=1,scrollbars=1,resizable=1'));;">Attorney wants some panelists removed </a></li> </ul> <h2>Related documents</h2> <ul class="morePdf"> <li><a href="/pdf/gensonletter.pdf">Genson's letter to AG Madigan </a></li> <li><a href="/pdf/MadiganResponse.pdf">Madigan's response </a></li> </ul> <ul class="links"> <h2>Complete coverage</h2> <li><a href="http://www.dailyherald.com/packages/2008/blagojevich/">Blagojevich investigation</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>