Blagojevich vows to appeal conviction on 1 count

CHICAGO -- A federal jury found former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich guilty on Tuesday of one count of lying to federal agents, and the judge said he intended to declare a mistrial on the more serious remaining 23 counts.

Federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald said the government is getting ready for a retrial of Blagojevich and his co-defendant brother as soon as possible. The charges had included the accusation that they had tried to sell or trade President Barack Obama's old Senate seat and that the governor had tried to use the power of his office for personal gain.

Blagojevich's lawyers said they would appeal.

"This jury shows you that the government threw everything but the kitchen sink at me," Blagojevich said. "They could not prove I did anything wrong -- except for one nebulous charge from five years ago."

The jurors' conclusion, on their 14th day of deliberations, ended an 11-week trial during which Blagojevich was heard on secretly made FBI wiretap tapes saying the power to name a senator was "[expletive] golden" and that he wasn't going to give up "for [expletive] nothing."

The count on which Blagojevich, 53, was convicted, one of the less serious counts, included accusations that he lied to federal agents when he said he did not track campaign contributions and kept a "firewall" between political campaigns and government work. It carries a sentence of up to five years in prison. Some of the more serious charges, such as racketeering, carried up to a 20-year penalty.

Judge James B. Zagel set a hearing for Aug. 26 to decide manner and timing of the retrial.

It had been clear that jurors were struggling. Last week, they told Zagel they had reached a unanimous decision on just two counts and had not even considered 11 others. There was no immediate explanation about whether they later disagreed.

The jurors did not remain at the courthouse Tuesday to explain their decisions. Soon after the verdict, a spokesman for Zagel said the jurors had left and would not appear in a room set aside for them to speak to the media.

"They're going home," said Joel Daly, a spokesman for Zagel. "A lot would like to talk to media folks, but they are plain tired."

Robert Blagojevich said the jury's conclusion showed he's been "an innocent target of the federal government" all along.

"I feel strong. I feel confident. I don't feel in any way deterred. I've done nothing wrong," he told reporters at the courthouse. "I've got ultimate confidence in my acquittal."

Defense attorneys had argued that Rod Blagojevich was a big talker, but never committed a crime. They took a huge gamble by deciding not to call any witnesses -- including Blagojevich, who had repeatedly promised to take the stand.

"The jury agreed that the government did not prove its case," the former governor said.

Some observers said the government will come back with a tougher case next time.

"And the government has the resources to keep trying until they get a conviction and they probably will," said Phil Turner, a former federal prosecutor. "And Blagojevich is running out of resources. It is a war of attrition the government can win."

While the verdict isn't a clear victory for the defense, Turner said it is a slap in the face to Fitzgerald and his team.

Turner pointed to the Fitzgerald's statement from the day Blagojevich was arrested, when he said prosecutors had stopped a "political corruption crime spree."

"This is clear defeat for prosecutors," Turner said. "The jurors' message to Fitzgerald is this was exaggeration and overstatement."

Turner said Fitzgerald's mistake was shutting down the covert investigation in 2008 and arresting Blagojevich before whatever alleged schemes played out.

"Had they let things proceed, this could have been an open and shut case," he said.

As he left the courthouse, Blagojevich got a huge round of applause from the courthouse crowd.

Leota Johnson, 72, of Chicago, chanted "Rod is free!" Johnson said she supports Blago because she isn't convinced he did anything wrong and that pay-for-play is Chicago politics as usual.

During the trial, prosecutors relied heavily on the FBI wiretaps, in which Blagojevich spewed profanity and speculated about getting a Cabinet job in exchange for the Senate appointment. Several witnesses also testified that they felt pressured to donate money to Blagojevich's campaign in exchange for favorable state action.

Blagojevich's trial was another chapter in Illinois' history of crooked politics. His predecessor, George Ryan, was convicted of racketeering in 2006 and is serving a 6 1/2-year sentence.