Jury selection in the landmark corruption trial of former Democratic political powerhouse Michael Madigan resumed Tuesday after a long holiday weekend, with seven panel members still needed to be selected before the opening statements begin.
Among those questioned in the morning session was Juror 72, a chemical plant worker who was a public relations staffer for the state Senate back in the 1990s, working under then-state Sen. Emil Jones Jr.
He said he took photographs and worked on communications and went door-to-door for Democratic campaigns, but did not fraternize with the politicians. He said he met Madigan once in passing, but really only knew him by his reputation as a “dominant leader.”
Asked if he went to any popular “watering holes” during his four years in Springfield, the potential juror said, “I was very young and very poor.”
“We didn’t go anywhere there was influential people,” he said with a laugh. “Bottom of the barrel, basically.”
Juror 72 said he does not follow state politics, and said that while he knew Madigan had been charged, he did not know any details about the allegations against him. He said he knew that Jones’ son “went into politics” himself but he has not kept up with their family.
Left unsaid in court was that Jones’ son, current state Sen. Emil Jones III, was also facing corruption charges. In fact, he had a status hearing in his case shortly before Juror 72 was questioned.
Unlike many prospective jurors, Juror 72 said he did not have a problem with long-serving politicians, saying he knew that politicians have a complicated job that could take years to really master.
“I know I’m different in that way, but I believe there is a place for someone who knows how it all works,” he said.
He also said he strongly believes that a politician’s business should be as separate as possible from their political life.
“I really believe they shouldn’t use politics to influence their business or get gains from it,” he said. “If you’re going to be in politics, be a politician. I don’t like the two mixing.”
Also questioned Tuesday morning were an occupational therapist from West Lawn who went to grade school with the son of Cicero Town President Larry Dominick, a woman from Westmont who works in education and said she supported former Gov. Bruce Rauner, and an “IT architect” from Vernon Hills, who said he knows the Madigan name but does not have an opinion of him.
Madigan, dressed in a dark gray suit and light blue tie, sat with his legs crossed and a yellow legal pad on one knee for much of the morning questioning.
Madigan, 82, for decades the speaker of the Illinois House, faces racketeering charges alleging he ran his state and political operations like a criminal enterprise, scheming with utility giants ComEd and AT&T to put his cronies on contracts requiring little or no work and using his public position to drum up business for his private law firm.
Both Madigan and his co-defendant, Michael McClain, 77, a former ComEd lobbyist and longtime confidant of Madigan’s, have pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing.
U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey had initially planned to have opening statements Tuesday, but the unexpectedly slow pace of jury selection has put proceedings about a week behind schedule. Opening statements may not be given until Monday.
A pool of more than 150 potential jurors from all over northern Illinois was called into the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse last week for the case, and attorneys are questioning each member of the panel individually to weed out potential bias. They are being referred to in court only by their juror numbers to protect their privacy.
Prospective jurors have been grilled about their news consumption habits, their familiarity with Madigan, and whether they have any opinions about unions, lobbying or the state of Illinois politics.
The first three jurors were chosen Wednesday, including a former kindergarten teacher, an Amazon warehouse worker and a Southwest Side insurance underwriter.
Five more were selected Thursday, including a suburban nurse and a Wrigleyville woman who said she recently helped her friend who plans professional events for Pritzker put on an event for the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Chosen Friday were three women: one who lives in the Mount Greenwood neighborhood and wanted to be on the panel to “give back to my city,” another who works at donation center, and a third who is a patient coordinator for University of Chicago Medical Center.
jmeisner@chicagotribune.com
mcrepeau@chicagotribune.com
