CHICAGO – Prosecutors at the corruption retrial of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich called their last few witness Thursday as they prepared to rest their case, which means Blagojevich's attorneys must decide soon about whether to mount their own case.
The prosecution's last new witness to take the stand was a former deputy governor under Blagojevich, who told jurors that his boss had planned to hold a $2 million grant to a school in then-U.S. Rep. Rahm Emanuel's district until Emanuel's Hollywood-agent brother held a fundraiser for the governor.
Bradley Tusk, who is not accused of wrongdoing, was a formidable witness in part because he was one of the few close aides to Blagojevich who expressed deep misgivings about alleged shakedowns at the time.
Tusk said he was aghast when Blagojevich called him in 2006 to tell him to pass the message on to Emanuel that the school wouldn't get the grant money until his brother raised campaign cash.
"I got off the phone as quickly as I could," Tusk testified.
After recalling a few witnesses, prosecutors were expected to rest their case later Thursday.
It would be the second time in less than a year that prosecutors will have finished a presentation to jurors in a Blagojevich trial. Not all the panelists at the first trial were persuaded after a six-week government case. Deadlocked jurors last year agreed only on convicting Blagojevich of lying to the FBI.
Blagojevich, who denies any wrongdoing, faces 20 counts this time, including that he tried to sell or trade President Barack Obama's vacated U.S. Senate seat for campaign cash or a high-profile job.
Over the objections of prosecutors on Thursday, defense attorney Sheldon Sorosky suggested in cross-examination that Blagojevich may not have been serious about the directive to call Emanuel.
"Did you know the governor would sometimes say explosive things, rash things and not really mean them?" he said. Judge James Zagel quickly admonished the attorney for the question.
"If you're done with the cross-examination, just sit down, because you are now into your closing argument," Zagel said.
The Chicago Academy eventually got its money and no fundraiser was held.
Prosecutors drastically streamlined their presentation this time after criticism that their case last year was overly complicated. This time, they called fewer witnesses, asked fewer questions and didn't linger on extraneous issues.
Their more cohesive case may put pressure on defense attorneys to call at least some witnesses. If they decide to mount a case, they won't have to begin until Monday at the earliest.
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