Blagojevich’s prosecutors say he isn’t remorseful enough as sentence looms

CHICAGO—Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich says he’s been a model prisoner for the past four years, teaching history, working out and singing in a jailhouse band.

Federal prosecutors say he should’ve spent more time apologizing.

In a 10-page filing that marks the final written arguments before Blagojevich’s resentencing hearing next month, prosecutors said he does not deserve a break on his 14-year sentence, in part because he’s never accepted responsibility for his crimes.

In fact, Blagojevich’s own statement from prison last year—decrying his conviction for what he said was simply political horse trading—should be enough to persuade U.S. District Judge James Zagel to impose the same sentence again, though a federal appeals court tossed out five of the counts in a ruling last year, prosecutors said.

“(Blagojevich) suggested that the crimes of which he remained convicted involved nothing but common, everyday campaign fundraising—at once minimizing his conduct, mischaracterizing the evidence of his guilt, and misrepresenting the nature and seriousness of the offenses,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Porter wrote in the filing late Monday.

Blagojevich’s lawyer, Leonard Goodman, wrote in a six-page response that prosecutors have failed to acknowledge that the appellate court threw out some of the more serious charges in Blagojevich’s case—including the “centerpiece” allegations he tried to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama after his election as president in 2008.

Goodman also said the ex-governor’s “record as an exemplary inmate” at the federal prison camp outside Denver should be considered. Earlier this month, Goodman submitted nearly 150 letters from Blagojevich’s fellow inmates describing his busy schedule, which includes exercising, working in the law library and teaching history to inmates seeking high school equivalency diplomas.

Blagojevich also formed a prison band called the Jailhouse Rockers that played at a GED graduation ceremony and a Fourth of July celebration a few years ago before breaking up because their lead guitarist was released, according to Goodman.

Goodman has argued Blagojevich should get as little as five years in prison when he is resentenced Aug. 9, a move that could have him released from custody almost immediately.

Zagel has set a status hearing in the case for Wednesday morning.

Blagojevich, 59, was convicted in 2011 of misusing his powers as governor in an array of wrongdoing. At this point, he is not scheduled to be released from prison until May 2024, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons website.

A federal appeals court last year dismissed five counts against the former governor, but that still left him convicted on 13 counts. The three-judge panel ordered resentencing but called the evidence against him “overwhelming” and made it clear that Zagel’s original sentence was not out of bounds. In March, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Blagojevich’s appeal.