Blagojevich Impeachment Prosecutor, a Novelist, Writes of Governors and ‘Rezko’
The prosecutor in the impeachment trial of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich may be better known for fiction than fact.
The prosecutor, David Ellis, is legal counsel for Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, the Chicago Tribune reports. He has never worked as a prosecutor or a criminal defense lawyer. In private practice at the law firm now known as Williams Bax & Saltzman, he practiced constitutional law until he joined the speaker’s office in 2007, according to the National Law Journal.
Ellis was principal author of the report by an Illinois legislative panel that recommended Blagojevich’s impeachment. But his legal writing is considerably broader than that.
Ellis has also authored five novels and is about to publish a sixth. The five published novels are all murder mysteries, and two feature characters related to fictional governors, according to a summary of the books on Ellis’ website. One novel features the daughter of a governor with political ambitions. Another chronicles the chief aide to a governor and a hidden scandal.
“People always ask me, ‘What made you start writing?’ ” Ellis writes on his website. “The truth is, I was a writer before I was a lawyer. When I was in fourth grade, I entered a school district-wide writing contest. I wrote a story called ‘The Loch Ness Mystery’ about two boys who solved a crime in Scotland. Guess what? It won the contest. Guess what else? In hindsight, I realized that every entry won.”
Ellis, a Northwestern law graduate, attributes much of his writing success to perseverance. He set aside about an hour a night for three years to write his first book. It was rejected by about 75 agents before Ellis found a publisher.
One of Ellis’ novels includes a minor fictional character named Tony Rezko. “Not that Tony Rezko, but an innocuous lab technician,” according to the Chicago Sun-Times. The real Rezko, a former fundraiser for Blagojevich, was convicted of fraud in June. He reportedly is giving authorities damaging information about the governor, according to an affidavit filed in connection with the arrest of Blagojevich.
Federal prosecutors have accused Blagojevich of trying to sell the Senate seat once held by Barack Obama.
Ellis’ wife, Susan, works for Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, the daughter of House Speaker Madigan. She was one of the first Illinois politicians to call for the resignation of Blagojevich.
