Rod Blagojevich Found Guilty in Corruption Trial
Patti Blagojevich, Rod Blagojevich
Rod Blagojevich has been convicted on 17 counts in connection to accusations that he tried to sell President Barack Obama's former U.S. Senate seat, according to the New York Times.
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Blagojevich was found guilty of wire fraud, attempted extortion, bribery, extortion conspiracy and bribery conspiracy. The jury acquitted him on one charge of bribery, but deadlocked on two counts of attempted extortion.
"Patti and I, obviously, are very disappointed by the outcome," Blagojevich told reporters after leaving court. "I, frankly, am stunned. There is not much left to say other than we want to get home to our little girls and explain things to them."
The most serious counts he was convicted of on Monday carry a penalty of up to 20 years in prison.
Blagojevich allowed to appear on Celebrity Apprentice
Before his case went to trial, the former Illinois governor appeared on The Celebrity Apprentice under stipulations that he would not talk about the case. In 2009, Blagojevich's wife replaced him on I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here after a federal judge barred him from participating because he would have to leave the country to shoot the reality show.