Some Northwestern officials with connections to former Gov. George Ryan expressed disappointment — but not surprise — at his recent federal indictment.
Ryan was indicted Dec. 17 on federal charges that he received payoffs and gifts in return for government leases and contracts during his terms as Illinois’ secretary of state and governor.
Ryan, who served as secretary of state from 1991 to 1999 and governor from 1999 to January 2003, is known across the country for his role in death penalty reform.
His efforts in that area will not be overshadowed by current events, said Rob Warden, the executive director for NU’s Center on Wrongful Convictions.
“Whatever happens, he will be judged by history for the noble things that he did, not for anything that might have occurred in the past,” Warden said.
Although he said he was saddened by the news of the charges, Warden called the indictment inevitable.
“If anything was surprising, it was that (the indictment) was delayed for as long as it was,” he said.
Ryan’s attorney, Dan Webb, entered a not guilty plea to the corruption charges Dec. 23.
“I’m absolutely not guilty of those charges,” Ryan told the Associated Press.
Pretrial hearings are ongoing as prosecutors and defense attorneys sort out whether Ryan will be tried with the lobbyists for whose clients he is accused of securing state contracts.
In a conversation he had with Ryan the day after the indictment, Warden said Ryan seemed very disappointed and perplexed by the charges.
“He seems to clearly believe that he did nothing wrong,” Warden said.
Ryan enacted a moratorium on capital punishment on Jan. 31, 2000, after learning 13 innocent men had received death sentences.
Before leaving office last January, he cleared out death row, commuting the sentences of 167 inmates to life in prison. He also pardoned four prisoners, two of whom had ties to NU.
David Protess, founder of the Medill Innocence Project, worked with investigative journalism students on the case of one of the pardoned prisoners. Journalism students, professors, private investigators and lawyers have freed eight innocent men from Illinois prisons in the past 12 years as part of the project.
Protess said he was “terribly disappointed” by the indictment.
“I feel badly for (Ryan) as a person because I think he’s a warm, engaging human being who has done a lot about a cause I care deeply about,” he said.
According to Protess, Ryan “will certainly always be remembered for the bold and courageous acts that he took regarding both the criminal justice system and the death penalty”.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
