Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) has been sentenced to 14 years in federal prison for trying to sell the Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama.
The Chicago Sun Times reports from the courtroom that “Blago” told the court he was “unbelievably sorry.” The judge said Blagojevich’s sentence reflected his acceptance of responsibility:
“I believe he did, in fact, accept [responsibility],” U.S. District Judge James Zagel said in announcing how long Blagojevich should spend in prison after being convicted of 18 corruption charges that included attempting to sell or trade an appointment to fill the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by the election of President Barack Obama.
The judge said he had given credit to Blagojevich, in deciding his sentence, for accepting responsibility for his crimes.
The sentence was just under the 15 to 20 year term prosecutors were seeking.
