Watch LIVE: The first of Phil Rogers' three-part interview with Rod Blagojevich begins at 10 p.m. Monday, Sept. 11, on NBC 5. Tune in at 10 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday for Parts 2 and 3. A half-hour special airs at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.
Five and a half years ago, on March 15, 2012, Rod Blagojevich stepped off an airplane in Denver, Colorado, en route to serving one of the longest prison sentences ever levied on a politician in America.
Just after noon, Blagojevich entered the facility known as FCI Englewood in the Colorado foothills.
And no one has heard from him since. Until now.
NBC 5 was granted extraordinary access to Blagojevich over two hours of interviews, during which he opens up about his time in prison, his family and his continuing hopes for exoneration.
“I take one day at a time,” he told NBC 5, saying his prime focus is staying strong for his two daughters, even as he continues to present a new legal case to the United States Supreme Court.
Also in the interviews, Patti Blagojevich talks about raising her two daughters in the absence of the former governor, and her continuing belief in his innocence.
“When they took him away, I just knew at that point, that nothing in our lives would ever be the same again,” she said, emphasizing that she is concentrating her efforts on clearing her husband’s name. “My daughters want to hold their heads high, being able to know that their father is not a criminal.”
During the interviews, Blagojevich talks about his life over the last five years, his relationship to former inmates, and specifics on why he says prosecutors and the jury got his case wrong. He reveals his hopes that the Supreme Court will use the case to clarify laws concerning campaign financing.
The stories begin tonight on the NBC 5 News at 10 p.m.
