After eight months of delays, backroom political fixer Robert Cantrell faces a possible federal prison sentence Thursday.
Cantrell's defense has filed six motions that pushed back court proceedings since June 6, the day a Hammond federal court jury convicted the East Chicago Democratic operative of 11 counts involving kickbacks and fraud. As of Monday, no new motions were filed that would further delay sentencing.
"We're prepared to proceed on Thursday," said acting U.S. Attorney David Capp.
Defense attorney Kevin Milner did not return calls for comment.
Between June and October, Milner filed four successful motions for more time to seek a new trial. Milner moved for a new trial in October, claiming no witness ever formally identified Cantrell during his trial. Judge Rudy Lozano rejected that argument.
It is unclear how much prison time Cantrell, 66, of Schererville, might face. Theoretically, Lozano could sentence Cantrell to time that would long exceed his life span, but his actual sentence will depend on sentencing guidelines, arguments by the prosecution and defense and a pre-sentence report from probation officials. That report remains confidential.
Neither Capp nor assistant U.S. attorneys Orest Szewciw and Wayne Ault would say Monday what type of sentence they will seek Thursday.
Capp, Szewciw and Ault also would not say whether Cantrell's sentence could be mitigated by potential cooperation with other federal investigations.
Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr., a Cantrell family friend and Democratic insider, said that if other Democrats think Cantrell is talking to the feds, those politicos aren't discussing the issue.
"Nobody's even really talking about the Cantrell sentencing," McDermott said.
Cantrell's legacy in Lake County politics is complicated, said Dan Lowery, a political commentator and vice president for academic affairs at Calumet College of St. Joseph. Cantrell's "egregiously awful" reputation makes him seem unique in local politics, Lowery said.
But even if Cantrell is unusual, corrupt politicians remain, Lowery said. Lowery doubts corrupt officials have been chastened by the "phenomenal" anti-corruption work of Capp and former U.S. Attorney Joseph Van Bokkelen.
"Bobby Cantrell is kind of a poster child for Lake County politics, the worst kind of Lake County politics," Lowery said. "This is a guy who made it into a sport."
