Sen. Roland Burris (D-IL)

Senator Roland Burris (D-IL) is a first-term senator from Illinois, appointed to the U.S. Senate in December 2008 by former Governor Rod Blagojevich to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of then President-elect Barack Obama. Sen. Burris’ ethics issues stem from the circumstances surrounding his appointment.

Conflicting Statements on Senate Appointment

On December 9, 2008, former Gov. Blagojevich was arrested by federal agents for what was described at the time as a “political corruption crime spree.” One of the central allegations against the governor was that he attempted to sell an appointment to the Senate seat vacated by President-elect Obama.

Sen. Burris was elevated to the Senate seat by the governor on December 30, 2008. When questions were raised about the appointment, Sen. Burris proclaimed, “I don’t have any taint from Gov. Blagojevich.” Over the next several months, Sen. Burris offered at least three different explanations under oath of how he came to be appointed to the Senate.

The Senate Ethics Committee launched an investigation into Sen. Burris on February 17, 2009, for repeatedly altering his statements regarding his appointment to the Senate and his contacts with Gov. Blagojevich and the governor’s associates.

On May 26, 2009, transcripts of a conversation between Sen. Burris and the former governor’s brother Rob Blagojevich, captured on a federal wiretap related to the corruption probe of Gov. Blagojevich, were released. In the transcripts, Sen. Burris mentioned his interest in the Senate seat and potentially raising money for the governor. Sen. Burris offered to “give him [Gov. Blagojevich] a check” and “do something at the [Burris’] law firm.” Later in the conversation he pledged to “personally do something.” Sen. Burris also discussed having his attorney make a donation – potentially in violation of Illinois elections law – but the attorney later advised against it.

In the first half of 2009, Sen. Burris did not report paying legal fees. His campaign reported raising $41,230, but carried $138,085 in debt. On April 9, 2009, Sen. Burris revealed that he had “rung up” $500,000 in legal expenses resulting from the investigation into his ties with the indicted governor. According to a spokesperson, Sen. Burris began setting up a legal defense fund, but is awaiting Senate approval.

Although a prosecutor found insufficient evidence to file state charges against Sen. Burris for perjury, federal perjury charges may still lie. Under federal law, anyone who takes an oath that he will testify, declare or offer written testimony that he subscribes to be true, but deliberately offers untrue statements about a material matter, is guilty of perjury.

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