Burris Lawyers Get Busy
By ZACH CHRISTMAN
Updated 1:43 PM CST, Thu, Jul 30, 2009
It's been a busy year for Roland Burris' attorneys, and it's only Jan 6.
Tuesday morning, Burris was stopped from entering the floor of the Senate or being sworn into office. By the afternoon, his lawyers had filed their third motion with the Illinois Supreme Court, urging the court to act more quickly to force Jesse White to sign Burris' appointment documents. [Read the latest motion]
The initial motion, a complaint for a writ of mandamus, was filed with the Supreme Court on Friday. If the court decides to issue the writ, the secretary of state would effectively be forced to sign onto Rod Blagojevich's Senate appointee.
The secretary of the Senate used the lack of White's signature as a reason for not accepting Burris onto the floor or allowing him to be sworn in.
On Monday, Burris' lawyers sent an affidavit to the Illinois House Impeachment Committee, laying out how he learned the governor was considering him to fill the Senate post. [Read Burris' affidavit]
The affidavit says Burris first learned he was being considered on Dec. 26, when one of Blagojevich's lawyers called him. Burris took a couple of days to decide, then told lawyer Sam Adam Jr. that he would accept. Only after those two conversations with the lawyer did Burris actually speak with the governor.
Burris was subpoenaed to appear before the Impeachment Committee on Wednesday, but will instead be in Washington meeting with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
No doubt, Burris' lawyers will be close at hand.
First Published: Jan 6, 2009 5:01 PM CST
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