Donald Trump commutes sentence of former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich – Chicago Tribune

Today is Sunday, February 18, the 49th day of 2024. There are 317 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On February 18, 2020, President Donald Trump commuted his 14-year prison sentence. former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich for political corruption; Blagojevich left prison hours later and returned to his home in Chicago. (Trump also granted pardons or clemency to former New York City police commissioner Bernie Kerik, financier Michael Milken, and many others.)

Related: The rise and fall of Rod Blagojevich and his presidential transition, a Chicago story

On this date:

In 1564 Michelangelo died in Rome.

In 1885, Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” was first published in the United States (after being published in England and Canada).

In 1970, the “Chicago Seven” defendants were found not guilty of conspiracy to incite riots at the 1968 Democratic Party national convention; five were convicted of violating the Riots Act 1968 (these convictions were later reversed).

In 1983, 13 people were shot to death at a gambling club in Seattle’s Chinatown in what became known as the Wah Mee Massacre. (Two men were convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison; the third was convicted of robbery and assault.)

In 1984, Italy and the Vatican signed an agreement stipulating that Roman Catholicism would cease to be the state religion of Italy.

In 1988, Anthony M. Kennedy was sworn in as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 1994, at the Winter Olympic Games in Norway, US speed skater Dan Jansen finally won the gold medal and broke the world record in the 1000 meters.

In 2001, senior FBI agent Robert Philip Hanssen was arrested and accused of spying for Russia. (Hanssen later pleaded guilty to espionage and attempted espionage and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.)

In 2001, auto racing star Dale Earnhardt Sr. Died in a crash at the Daytona 500; He was 49 years old.

In 2003, 198 people lost their lives in an arson attack involving two South Korean subway trains in the city of Daegu. (The arsonist was sentenced to life in prison and died in 2004.)

In 2012, a star-studded funeral was held for pop singer Whitney Houston at New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey, a week after her death at age 48.

Norma McCorvey, whose legal challenge under the pseudonym “Jane Roe” led to the groundbreaking U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion but who later became an outspoken opponent of the procedure, died in 2017 in Katy, Texas, at the age of 69.

In 2018, Walt Disney Co.’s Marvel superhero movie “Black Panther” exceeded expectations and grossed $192 million in its opening weekend in the United States and Canada.

In 2023, former President Jimmy Carter entered home hospice. The charity created by the 98-year-old former president said that after a series of short hospital stays, Carter “decided to spend his remaining time at home with his family and seek hospice care rather than additional medical attention.” (Carter survives a year later).

Today’s birthdays: Today’s Birthdays: Singer Yoko Ono 91. Singer-songwriter Bobby Hart 85. Singer Irma Thomas 83. Singer Herman Santiago (Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers) 83. Actor Jess Walton 78. Singer Dennis DeYoung Actor Sinead 77 years old Cusack is 76, Actor Cybill Shepherd is 74, Singer Randy Crawford is 72, Actor John Travolta is 70, Actor John Pankow is 69, Game show host Vanna White is 67, Actor Jayne Atkinson is 65, Actor Greta Scacchi is 64. Actor Matt Dillon is 60. Rock musician Tommy Scott (Space) ) 60. Rapper Dr. Dre is 59. Actor Molly Ringwald is 56. Actor Sarah Brown is 49. Country musician Trevor Rosen (Old Dominion) is 49. Actor Ike Barinholtz Actor Kristoffer Polaha is 47 years old. Singer-musician Sean Watkins (Nickel Creek) is 47. Rock singer-musician Regina Spektor is 44. Opera singer Isabel Leonard is 42. Roots rock musician Zac Cockrell (Alabama Shakes) is 36. Actor Shane Lyons is 36, Actor Sarah Sutherland is 36, Actor Maiara Walsh is 36. years old.