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U.S. NEWSFriday 16 October 2015
Attorney: Former U.S. House speaker
Dennis Hastert intends to plead guilty
MICHAEL TARM
Associated Press
CHICAGO (AP) — For-
mer U.S. House Speaker
Dennis Hastert intends to
plead guilty in a federal
hush-money case linked
to allegations of sexual
misconduct from decades
ago, a defense attorney
told a federal judge Thurs-
day.
Hastert, a Republican who
held the powerful post of
House speaker for nine
years until 2007, is charged included in the plea deal,
with one count of break-
ing banking laws and one
count of lying to the FBI
about agreeing to pay
someone $3.5 million to
hide claims of unspecified
past misconduct. Each
count carries a maximum
five-year prison term.
The Associated Press and
other media, citing anon-
ymous sources, have re-
ported the payments were
meant to conceal claims
of sexual misconduct. The
indictment against Hast-
ert does not detail the
underlying misconduct,
and both prosecutors and
defense attorneys have
taken steps to keep the in-
formation confidential.
Hastert was the longest
serving Republican House
speaker, post that made
him the most powerful
figure in Congress and
second-in-line to the presi-
dency.
A written plea agreement
should be completed by
Monday, attorney John
Gallo said during a brief
status hearing. At the at-
torney’s request, a federal
judge set Oct. 28 as the
date for Hastert to change
his plea.
Defendants typically
agree to plead guilty in
hopes of a more lenient
sentence. A plea deal for
the 73-year-old Illinois Re-
publican would also avert
a trial and help keep any
potentially embarrassing
Hastert secrets quiet.
Neither Gallo nor prosecu-
tors offered any details
about what the plea deal
might say, including which
counts Hastert would
In this June, 2015 photo, former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, right, departs the federal plead guilty to or whether
courthouse with attorney Thomas C. Green in Chicago. An attorney for Hastert told a federal he would serve any prison
judge that the former House speaker intends to plead guilty in a federal hush-money case time.
during a hearing Thursday Oct. 15, 2015 in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) After being questioned

by banking officials about
large cash withdrawals,
Hastert allegedly began
structuring the withdrawals
in increments of just under
$10,000 to avoid reporting
rules. He’s also accused of
lying to the FBI about the
reason for the withdraw-
als. Investigators have said
Hastert withdrew about
$1.7 million from 2010 to
2014.
A plea deal would mean
that “Individual A,” who
has never been identified,
would not have to testify
about receiving any of the
money.
Hastert could still change
his mind. Gallo told U.S.
District Judge Thomas M.
Durkin that the defense
“reserved the right” to go
to trial if talks collapse in
the final days.
A main aim of Hastert’s
lawyers has likely been to
ensure details about his al-
leged misconduct are not
in sentencing memos or
in any other court docu-
ment, said Jeff Cramer, a
former federal prosecutor
in Chicago.
The question of how to ad-
dress motive is probably
another sticking point, he
added. Plea deals typi-
cally touch on motive,
though in Hastert’s case
that could force him to
acknowledge the con-
duct behind the charges.
Plea deals often require
a defendant to plead
guilty to one count in ex-
change for the rest being
dropped. Some deals fix
a specific sentence, while
others suggest a range of
punishments, leaving the
final call to a judge.
Prosecutors are prob-
ably seeking a prison sen-
tence. It would be unusual
for them to entertain the
possibility of probation
on such serious charges.
Each count is punishable
by up to five years behind
bars.
A sentencing date is usu-
ally set for a date after
the guilty plea, though de-
fendants are sometimes
sentenced the same day.
The latter could be an op-
tion Hastert prefers, allow-
ing him to get the process
over with fast.q