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U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber said releasing the recordings to the public would “sensationalize the trial more than we want.”

The four were indicted in November 2020 and accused in a nearly decadelong scheme to sway Madigan. They allegedly landed his associates jobs, contracts and money while legislation crucial to ComEd’s bottom line moved through Springfield.

U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber presides over both cases, which had been scheduled for back-to-back trials this year. The ComEd case involves former House Speaker Michael Madigan’s co-defendant, Michael McClain.

Michael Madigan’s son Andrew has not been accused of wrongdoing. But his name was made public Thursday as allegedly taking part in a conversation tied to his father’s bribery charges.

Madigan’s comments may not exactly find a place in the Chicago corruption lexicon, but most of the words previously attributed by the feds to Madigan are far more flat.

The ex-Illinois House Speaker was recorded on a wiretapped phone call in 2018 discussing with lobbyist confidant Michael McClain a plan to arrange secret payments to a close political ally who had been implicated in a sexual harassment scandal, newly released court documents show. Madigan has…

Defense attorneys in the case made the surprise move last month of telling U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber they’d prefer that case go forward as a bench trial — decided by the judge — rather than as a jury trial.

But in a surprise move during a status hearing Wednesday, Michael McClain’s defense attorney told the judge the defendants would prefer to have it go forward as a bench trial — decided by the judge — rather than as a jury trial. Prosecutors must agree to that request.

At its core, the alleged bribery scheme involving ex-Speaker Michael Madigan and utility giant Commonwealth Edison is an alarmingly familiar lesson on how often-cozy relationships between business leaders and politicians can catch the attention of federal prosecutors.