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Blagojevich Gets 14 Years For Corruption

Rod Blagojevich is going to jail. The ousted governor of Illinois has been sentenced to fourteen years in jail. It stands as one of the stiffest penalties imposed for corruption in the state, and Illinois has a long history of crooked politicians. Among the 18 convictions, the most heinous has been his attempt to leverage the appointment to replace President Barack Obama in the Senate for some reward.

Judge James Zagel gave Blagojevich some credit for taking responsibility for what he did, but said that it was not enough to mitigate his crimes. Zagel stated “When it is the governor who goes bad, the fabric of Illinois is torn and disfigured and not easily repaired.”

Blagojavich hunched forward when the verdict was announced, according to the reports, and his face appeared to be frozen.

Blagojevich is the second former Illinois governor in a row to be sentenced to prison in a row and the fourth in the last four decades. His Republican predecessor, George Ryan, is currently serving a six-and-a-half year sentence for corruption.

Blagojavich did make one last plea for mercy by apologizing for his actions and claiming that he made some terrible mistakes. He even said that “I’m here convicted of crimes … , and I am accepting of it, I acknowledge it and I of course am unbelievably sorry for it.”

Zagel was not moved.