Longtime Madigan Aide Mapes Pleads "Not Guilty" to Perjury, Obstruction Charges
Tim Mapes, the longtime Chief of Staff to former House Speaker Michael Madigan, pleaded not guilty to federal perjury and obstruction charges Friday.
One of the closest aides to longtime House Speaker Michael Madigan pleaded “not guilty” Friday to charges he lied before a federal grand jury.
From the Chicago Sun-Times:
The arraignment of Timothy Mapes, 66, took place during a remote hearing before U.S. District Judge John Lee. Mapes could be heard in Lee’s courtroom giving only simple answers like “yes, sir” to the judge’s questions.
Lee said Mapes would remain free pending trial on an unsecured $10,000 bond. Prosecutors asked that Mapes also give up his Firearm Owner’s Identification card. Mapes’ attorney, Andrew Porter, did not object but said Mapes was “concerned that he’s able to locate it.”
Mapes’ arraignment had initially been scheduled as an in-person hearing. That would have forced Mapes to stroll past news cameras in the lobby of the Dirksen Federal Courthouse, a ritual faced by scores of public corruption defendants that’s been lost in the coronavirus era.
Later Thursday, court records showed Mapes had agreed to appear by video.
Mapes’ attorneys denied the charges against their client in a statement earlier this week. They said the case was really all about one man: Madigan.
“Tim Mapes testified truthfully in the grand jury,” they wrote. “His honest recollections — in response to vague and imprecise questions about events that allegedly took place many years ago — simply do not constitute perjury. This case, of course, is not about him — but about the government’s continued pursuit of his former boss. Tim Mapes has in no way engaged in obstruction of justice, and looks forward to prevailing at trial when all of the facts are aired.”