How Did Illinois Get C for Integrity Rating?

Illinois’ legal ethical legacy is shadowy, but getting brighter. Former Gov. Blagojevich, a Democrat, who entered prison recently, is the fourth of the last nine governors of this state of 12.9 million residents sentenced to prison. His predecessor, George Ryan Sr., a Republican, is nearing the end of his six-year stint in the Terre Haute, Ind. penitentiary.

Each of these lapses, though, brought some reforms, which explains why Illinois received a grade of C and a numerical score of 74 from the State Integrity Investigation, a collaboration of the Center for Public Integrity, Global Integrity and Public Radio International. Those scores ranked Illinois 10th among the 50 states. Go to Illinois:The story behind the score – State Integrity Investigation, to see the whole story.