Top precinct captain Ed Moody takes stand against Mike Madigan

A longtime top precinct captain for ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan testified Wednesday that Madigan arranged for him to be paid hundreds of thousands of dollars so that he’d keep campaigning for Illinois Democrats — and to do little else.

Now Madigan is on trial. Jurors know the money all came from ComEd. And longtime Madigan door-knocker Ed Moody said the deal boiled down to this: “Do the political work, keep the contract. Don’t do political work, don’t keep the contract.”

But Moody also found himself being questioned for the first time by one of Madigan’s defense attorneys. Tom Breen tested Moody’s interpretation of events, insisting that, “Mr. Madigan never told you he’d get you a no-work, no-show job, correct?”

Moody agreed but still delivered damaging testimony in the racketeering conspiracy trial of Madigan and his longtime ally, Michael McClain. Prosecutors say ComEd paid $1.3 million to Moody and four other Madigan allies so the Southwest Side Democrat would look favorably upon the utility's legislation.

Moody is the only one of the five recipients that jurors are expected to hear from. When he took the witness stand Wednesday, he quickly acknowledged that he was paid $354,000 between 2012 and 2018, but he did little additional work to earn that money.

He said Madigan told him, “This is how I reward my good soldiers.”

Madigan resigned in 2021 and is accused of leading a criminal enterprise designed to enhance his political power and benefit his allies. McClain allegedly acted as his agent. The claims regarding ComEd are one key pillar of the case — but prosecutors seem to be nearly done showing jurors the evidence related to it.

That evidence formed the basis of last year’s ComEd bribery trial, which ended with the conviction of McClain and three others. Moody also testified then, and his commentary Wednesday seemed to largely mirror what he’d said in 2023.

Madigan’s attorneys got their first chance on Wednesday to cross-examine Moody, who said he secured an “immunity letter” from prosecutors. Cross-examination is expected to continue Thursday.

Moody, 60, is a former Cook County commissioner and recorder of deeds. In his younger days, he liked walking, helping people and politics. He told jurors Wednesday that working for Madigan’s 13th Ward political organization gave him the chance to do all three.

He and his twin brother knocked on lots of doors for Illinois Democrats. Moody said that eventually helped him land jobs working for the Cook County Highway Department and the Cook County Circuit Court.

“I absolutely loved it,” Moody said of his campaigning for Madigan. He called it a "privilege" to be invited into constituents' homes and “be treated like family” as he encouraged them to vote in lockstep with sample ballots he handed them.

After helping win a 1992 state House election by flipping Republican precincts in Orland Park, Moody said Madigan praised the brothers.

“We were off the charts,” Moody said Madigan told them. “We did really well.”

Madigan helped Moody secure a $40,000-a-year job at the courthouse in Bridgeview, Moody testified. He said he couldn’t recall if he had to submit an application, and said he didn’t really have to interview.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane MacArthur asked Moody on Wednesday if he felt there was a connection between the courthouse job and his political work with Madigan. Moody told her, “Well, he got me the job.”

Moody said that also came with pressure to continue to do political work and perform at a high level, though.

Eventually, Moody turned to Madigan again around 2011. He said he told the speaker that “even though I had a pension, I hadn’t saved enough money for retirement,” and he was hoping to make an extra $45,000 a year.

The speaker didn’t respond, Moody said.

That left Moody “hurt” and “angry,” he said, and he wound up having another “very intense” meeting with Madigan, joined by his brother. That led to an encounter in a hallway, where Moody said Madigan “barked out” that “You’ll be working for McClain.”

Moody also said Madigan explained that, “if I stopped doing what it is I’m doing, I’m going to lose my contract.”

Breen later challenged Moody on that event.

“You told us you were angry,” Breen reminded him on cross-examination. “… You demanded a job from Mr. Madigan, and if you didn’t get it, you couldn’t do any more political work for him?”

“I never said that,” Moody countered.

“[Madigan] would have every reason to believe that you would show up, do excellent work, and continue on as you had at Bridgeview?” Breen insisted.

Prosecutors objected, and Moody didn’t get a chance to answer.

As part of his deal with McClain, Moody said he made one round of phone calls to state lawmakers each month — a task that took him an entire hour. Between January and April 2013, he said he also made a canvassing effort on behalf of ComEd.

Then, the arrangement changed. Moody’s money began to flow instead through then-City Club President Jay Doherty, and then through firms belonging to Shaw Decremer and John Bradley, who also have ties to Madigan. Jurors have previously been told that all the money originated with ComEd.

Unlike with McClain, Moody said he did no work at all for the others. He also said that, when the arrangement first began, McClain told him it was “one hell of a plum.

“And I owe the speaker big.”

Contributing: Dave McKinney