Blago Jury Reaches Verdicts On 18 Counts

Yahoo! News reports:

Jurors deliberating in the corruption trial of ousted Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich told a judge on Monday that they have reached a verdict on 18 of the 20 counts against him, and attorneys in the case have agreed that the verdict should be read.

Judge James Zagel said that will happen Monday afternoon.

The jury had returned to the federal courthouse in Chicago on Monday after nine days of deliberations. They had been talking over the evidence in the case over a three-week period.

Blagojevich, 54, has denied all wrongdoing, including allegations that he sought to sell or trade an appointment to President Barack Obama's vacated U.S. Senate seat in exchange for

The ousted governor faced 20 charges, including that he sought to sell or trade an appointment to President Barack Obama's vacated Senate seat and schemed to shake down executives for campaign donations.

Blagojevich took the stand at the retrial and denied all the charges.