Chicago
A jury this week convicted former Illinois Gov. George Ryan of 18 felonies, including fraud, racketeering, and lying to investigators. Prosecutors said Ryan, 72, accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of gifts in exchange for steering state contracts to friends and associates. Some of the infractions took place when Ryan served as secretary of state in the 1990s, and some during his single four-year term as governor, starting in 1999. The verdict came after a six-month trial and five weeks of deliberations. “Today’s verdict proves that no one is above the law,” said Gov. Rod Blagojevich, Ryan’s successor. Ryan, a Republican, now faces up to 20 years in prison.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Home Depots are the new epicenters of ICE raidsIn the Spotlight The chain has not provided many comments on the ongoing raids
-
Why does Trump keep interfering in the NYC mayoral race?Today's Big Question The president has seemingly taken an outsized interest in his hometown elections, but are his efforts to block Zohran Mamdani about political expediency or something deeper?
-
The pros and cons of banning cellphones in classroomsPros and cons The devices could be major distractions
