Former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert has been hospitalized since early November after suffering a stroke shortly after he pleaded guilty in Chicago to making hush-money payments to hide wrongdoing in his past, his lawyer confirmed Thursday.
Hastert, 73, suffered a stroke and was admitted to an undisclosed hospital "during the first week of November," attorney Thomas Green said in a statement. Hastert has since been treated for sepsis, a blood infection, and has had two surgeries on his back, Green said.
"We are hopeful that Mr. Hastert will be released from the hospital in the early part of the new year," Green said. "The family very much desires that during Mr. Hastert's continued hospitalization his privacy will be respected."
Hastert pleaded guilty Oct. 28 to a felony count of illegally structuring cash withdrawals to evade bank currency reporting requirements. He has been free on his own recognizance and is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 29.
Rumors about Hastert's hospitalization have been swirling for several days. Last week, C. William Pollard, who identified himself as a longtime friend of Hastert, wrote a letter asking U.S. District Judge Thomas Durkin to grant leniency to the former speaker "in light of his recent hospital stay."
Hastert's felony conviction marked a dramatic downfall for a man who was once one of Illinois' most powerful Republicans, having risen from humble beginnings as a small-town high school teacher to the third-highest elected office in the country.
In his plea agreement with prosecutors, Hastert admitted he arranged with a person identified only as Individual A in 2010 to pay a total of $3.5 million to cover up past misconduct from his days as a wrestling coach and teacher in far west suburban Yorkville.
Though both the plea agreement and the original indictment filed against Hastert earlier this year only hint at the alleged wrongdoing, federal law enforcement sources have told the Tribune that Hastert was paying to cover up the sexual abuse of a student from decades ago.
For about two years beginning in June 2010, Hastert made 15 withdrawals of $50,000 apiece, giving the cash to Individual A at meetings that occurred about every six weeks, according to the plea agreement.
But after bank officials warned Hastert in April 2012 that such large withdrawals had to be reported to financial regulators, he began illegally structuring the transactions in increments of less than $10,000 to avoid federal reporting requirements, according to the plea agreement. Over the next 21/2 years, Hastert made a total of 106 withdrawals in increments of less than $10,000, totaling $952,000.
When FBI agents questioned Hastert about the withdrawals at his Plano home in December, he lied by claiming he was keeping the cash he had been withdrawing "in a safe place," the plea agreement stated.
The indictment said Hastert told agents he was wary of the banking system.
While Hastert is now a convicted felon, he may not do any prison time. His plea agreement with prosecutors recommends a sentence ranging from probation to up to six months behind bars — the lowest possible sentence under federal guidelines for anyone convicted of a felony.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-dennis-hastert-stroke-20151217-story.html
Hastert, 73, suffered a stroke and was admitted to an undisclosed hospital "during the first week of November," attorney Thomas Green said in a statement. Hastert has since been treated for sepsis, a blood infection, and has had two surgeries on his back, Green said.
"We are hopeful that Mr. Hastert will be released from the hospital in the early part of the new year," Green said. "The family very much desires that during Mr. Hastert's continued hospitalization his privacy will be respected."
Hastert pleaded guilty Oct. 28 to a felony count of illegally structuring cash withdrawals to evade bank currency reporting requirements. He has been free on his own recognizance and is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 29.
Rumors about Hastert's hospitalization have been swirling for several days. Last week, C. William Pollard, who identified himself as a longtime friend of Hastert, wrote a letter asking U.S. District Judge Thomas Durkin to grant leniency to the former speaker "in light of his recent hospital stay."
Hastert's felony conviction marked a dramatic downfall for a man who was once one of Illinois' most powerful Republicans, having risen from humble beginnings as a small-town high school teacher to the third-highest elected office in the country.
In his plea agreement with prosecutors, Hastert admitted he arranged with a person identified only as Individual A in 2010 to pay a total of $3.5 million to cover up past misconduct from his days as a wrestling coach and teacher in far west suburban Yorkville.
Though both the plea agreement and the original indictment filed against Hastert earlier this year only hint at the alleged wrongdoing, federal law enforcement sources have told the Tribune that Hastert was paying to cover up the sexual abuse of a student from decades ago.
For about two years beginning in June 2010, Hastert made 15 withdrawals of $50,000 apiece, giving the cash to Individual A at meetings that occurred about every six weeks, according to the plea agreement.
But after bank officials warned Hastert in April 2012 that such large withdrawals had to be reported to financial regulators, he began illegally structuring the transactions in increments of less than $10,000 to avoid federal reporting requirements, according to the plea agreement. Over the next 21/2 years, Hastert made a total of 106 withdrawals in increments of less than $10,000, totaling $952,000.
When FBI agents questioned Hastert about the withdrawals at his Plano home in December, he lied by claiming he was keeping the cash he had been withdrawing "in a safe place," the plea agreement stated.
The indictment said Hastert told agents he was wary of the banking system.
While Hastert is now a convicted felon, he may not do any prison time. His plea agreement with prosecutors recommends a sentence ranging from probation to up to six months behind bars — the lowest possible sentence under federal guidelines for anyone convicted of a felony.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-dennis-hastert-stroke-20151217-story.html
