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Closing arguments begin in former Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan's corruption trial

Closing arguments underway in Mike Madigan trial
Closing arguments underway in Mike Madigan trial 02:34

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Closing arguments began Wednesday afternoon in the landmark racketeering conspiracy case against former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.

After more than three months of testimony from more than 60 witnesses, what is possibly the largest political corruption trial in Illinois history trial is drawing to a close.

Madigan is charged with 23 counts – including racketeering, conspiracy, bribery, and wire fraud – for five different "schemes" during his 36-year tenure as Illinois House Speaker.

The prosecution began their closing argument with a PowerPoint presentation, and two words in large bold print: "power and profit."

Madigan sat and listened as prosecutors laid out the charges against him and McClain.

Madigan, 82, and his co-defendant, lobbyist and confidant Michael McClain, are accused of running a criminal enterprise designed to enrich the former speaker and his associates and increase his political power.

Prosecutors have said ComEd and AT&T bribed Madigan by providing no-show jobs to his allies in an attempt to win his support for legislation they were seeking. They also have accused Madigan of pressuring real estate developers into hiring his law firm, which focused on property tax appeals.

Madigan spent a record 36 years as Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, controlling whether legislation moved forward in Springfield.

Prosecutors began with strong words, saying, "ladies and gentlemen, legislation should not be bought, but that's what was happening here."

Federal prosecutors mentioned a "stream of bribes" they said Madigan solicited that "lined his own pockets."

"Over the last three months, the jury saw behind the scenes of corruption at the highest level of government," prosecutors said.

Prosecutors also revisited some of the dozens of wiretap recordings jurors heard during the trial, including an interview with Madigan in which they argue he admitted giving a job to a Democratic Party precinct captain while Madigan was the party's chairman.

"I'm trying to take somebody who would never thought that they'd be a Democratic precinct captain and make them into a salesman," Madigan said.

Madigan, nicknamed "The Velvet Hammer," has denied any wrongdoing. While testifying in his own defense earlier this month, Madigan said those remarks he made, and other similar remarks, were job recommendations he was making as speaker, and were not orders for anyone to do anything specific.

Closing arguments are expected to last through the end of the week, meaning jurors likely will begin deliberations on Monday.  

U.S. District Judge John Blakey spent the first half of the day on Wednesday reading the jury their instructions – totaling more than 100 pages.

"It's going to take a long time for the judge to read them, and it will take a really long time for the jury to take these instructions back to the jury room and try to figure them out," CBS News Legal Analyst Irv Miller said of the jury instructions. "They're very complicated, and particularly in this case the lawyers and the judge couldn't agree on what some of these instructions should be. They couldn't agree on how to define the word 'corrupt.'"

Closing arguments set to start Wednesday in Mike Madigan’s corruption trial 03:39

Madigan's defense team rested their case last week, after hoping to convince jurors prosecutors are overreaching by bringing a historic racketeering conspiracy claim against the man once considered Illinois' most power politician.

Over seven days of testimony, the defense called 12 witnesses, including Madigan, who testified for nearly 12 hours over four days.

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