Part 2: It’s A Family Business

By Dave McKinney, Colin McNulty
Chicago Alderman Richard Mell, left, looks on as his son-in-law, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich waves during his inauguration in Springfiled, Ill., in this Jan. 13, 2002 file photo. Mell has been on the Chicago City Council long enough to remember the days when he and his fellow aldermen could hand out city jobs and contracts like candy. But when a witness in the major corruption trial of a political fundraiser Antoin “Tony” Rezko testified Mell was angry he hadn’t gotten any ‘spoils’ when his son-in-law was elected governor, Mell told reporters he didn’t know what the guy was talking about. Like the governor, Mell, 69, is not accused by prosecutors of any wrongdoing in the trial going on at federal court in Chicago.
Chicago Alderman Richard Mell, left, looks on as his son-in-law, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich waves during his inauguration in Springfiled, Ill., in this Jan. 13, 2002 file photo. Mell has been on the Chicago City Council long enough to remember the days when he and his fellow aldermen could hand out city jobs and contracts like candy. But when a witness in the major corruption trial of a political fundraiser Antoin "Tony" Rezko testified Mell was angry he hadn't gotten any 'spoils' when his son-in-law was elected governor, Mell told reporters he didn't know what the guy was talking about. Like the governor, Mell, 69, is not accused by prosecutors of any wrongdoing in the trial going on at federal court in Chicago. Charles Rex Arbogast/AP FILE
Chicago Alderman Richard Mell, left, looks on as his son-in-law, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich waves during his inauguration in Springfiled, Ill., in this Jan. 13, 2002 file photo. Mell has been on the Chicago City Council long enough to remember the days when he and his fellow aldermen could hand out city jobs and contracts like candy. But when a witness in the major corruption trial of a political fundraiser Antoin "Tony" Rezko testified Mell was angry he hadn't gotten any 'spoils' when his son-in-law was elected governor, Mell told reporters he didn't know what the guy was talking about. Like the governor, Mell, 69, is not accused by prosecutors of any wrongdoing in the trial going on at federal court in Chicago. Charles Rex Arbogast/AP FILE
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Chicago Alderman Richard Mell, left, looks on as his son-in-law, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich waves during his inauguration in Springfiled, Ill., in this Jan. 13, 2002 file photo. Mell has been on the Chicago City Council long enough to remember the days when he and his fellow aldermen could hand out city jobs and contracts like candy. But when a witness in the major corruption trial of a political fundraiser Antoin “Tony” Rezko testified Mell was angry he hadn’t gotten any ‘spoils’ when his son-in-law was elected governor, Mell told reporters he didn’t know what the guy was talking about. Like the governor, Mell, 69, is not accused by prosecutors of any wrongdoing in the trial going on at federal court in Chicago.
Chicago Alderman Richard Mell, left, looks on as his son-in-law, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich waves during his inauguration in Springfiled, Ill., in this Jan. 13, 2002 file photo. Mell has been on the Chicago City Council long enough to remember the days when he and his fellow aldermen could hand out city jobs and contracts like candy. But when a witness in the major corruption trial of a political fundraiser Antoin "Tony" Rezko testified Mell was angry he hadn't gotten any 'spoils' when his son-in-law was elected governor, Mell told reporters he didn't know what the guy was talking about. Like the governor, Mell, 69, is not accused by prosecutors of any wrongdoing in the trial going on at federal court in Chicago. Charles Rex Arbogast/AP FILE
Chicago Alderman Richard Mell, left, looks on as his son-in-law, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich waves during his inauguration in Springfiled, Ill., in this Jan. 13, 2002 file photo. Mell has been on the Chicago City Council long enough to remember the days when he and his fellow aldermen could hand out city jobs and contracts like candy. But when a witness in the major corruption trial of a political fundraiser Antoin "Tony" Rezko testified Mell was angry he hadn't gotten any 'spoils' when his son-in-law was elected governor, Mell told reporters he didn't know what the guy was talking about. Like the governor, Mell, 69, is not accused by prosecutors of any wrongdoing in the trial going on at federal court in Chicago. Charles Rex Arbogast/AP FILE
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Part 2: It’s A Family Business

By Dave McKinney, Colin McNulty
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The relationship between Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his father-in-law, Alderman Dick Mell? It’s complicated.

The trouble started soon after Rod Blagojevich became Governor of Illinois. A federal investigation began and a powerful political family tore itself apart.

Public Official A, a new podcast from WBEZ, examines the rise and fall of ex-Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich.

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