Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s effort to get an appellate court to hear an appeal of his convictions for government corruption was rejected Wednesday.
Blagojevich, a Democrat, was convicted on 18 counts in 2011 after a secret scheme to sell the appointment to President Obama’s former Senate seat to the highest bidder in 2008 was exposed. He is currently serving a 14-year sentence in a federal prison in Denver.
On July 21, a three-judge tribunal at the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals threw out five of Blagojevich’s convictions on technical grounds. The ex-governor had hoped to get the same court to reject some of his remaining 13 convictions.
However, the same judges also said last month that the evidence against him was “overwhelming” and his sentence was reasonable given his crimes. On Wednesday, the judges announced that they were unanimous in denying his petition for a rehearing. Blagojevich’s only recourse now would be to appeal to the Supreme Court.
