In 1994, six children burned to death in this van. WLS-TV in Chicago explains:
Rev. Scott Willis and his family were driving on a Wisconsin interstate when a piece of metal fell off a semi tractor trailer truck. It punctured the gas tank on their minivan, which burst into flames. The driver of that semi had illegally purchased his commercial drivers’ license. The crash ignited the investigation Operation Safe Road, a scandal that paved the way to Ryan’s trial.
Yes, the licenses-for-bribes scandal came out of this accident. Ryan got campaign money and the Willises got six little coffins. So excuse me for not feeling sorry for poor old George Ryan as he faces six years in the slammer. His attorneys, led by former Gov. James Thompson, want us to pity the crook:
“He is a 73-year-old grandfather whose life revolves around his 17 grandchildren,” the attorneys said. […] Thompson noted that at Ryan’s age six years behind bars would be “a real threat to the governor and his health.”
Cry me a river. What about the “real threat” to motorists all over this and surrounding states that resulted from Ryan’s graft and corruption? What about their families? What about the grandparents whose lives revolved around those six Willis grandchildren? They won’t get to enjoy their grandchildren anymore, will they? At least Ryan’s grandchildren can visit him in the pokey.
Even the dissenting opinion of the appeals court said “the evidence of the defendant’s guilt was overwhelming,” and only took issue with the process. Not to minimize the point that the process is important, but the result is going to be the same even if they have another trial. Ryan is guilty. He should be in prison now. Let him have his retrial, if necessary, so we can say we preserved the integrity of the system, but let him mount his defense from the big house.
C.J: you are right about Ryan going to prison; however, he can’t be blamed for the death of the people in the accident you described, no matter how horrible it was; it was people directly dealing licenses in the Sec. of States’ office, not Ryan personally. That insinuation is the worst part of his prosecution. He was a crooked politician and will pay for it.
I don’t disagree with that, RomanII. But I’m not making a court case here. I’m speaking as a father and an Illinois resident. As far as I’m concerned, Ryan is ultimately responsible for those kids’ deaths. The buck stops with Ryan. Whether that’s the strongest part of the prosecution’s case or not makes no difference to me as long as, in the end, he goes to jail.
Ryan was in charge of the corruption. He is responsible for those, and probably other, deaths, in my opinion. That he isn’t in the slammer now is a travesity of justice. The people of Illinois should be howling. And ex-governor “Big Jim” Thompson, alleged crime fighter, is another disgrace to the state, for his part in this. Don’t give me he’s just doing his job. Baloney. He and his firm are doing it for free. If they are so civic minded, they can represent people of modest means. How many small-time criminals, who did stupid but less serious things, have to pay for what representation they can, and go to jail for just as long, on evidence no stronger than they have against Ryan, without the long appeal reprieves?