Hastert arrives for his appearance in a Chicago federal court
After days of silence, J. Dennis Hastert, a former speaker of the House of Representatives, on Tuesday pleaded not guilty to federal charges that he illegally structured bank withdrawals and lied to the authorities about millions of dollars he had promised to pay someone for misconduct that occurred decades ago.Hastert has been charged with "structuring"; taking out large amount of cash in small increments intended to dodge federal reporting requirements—cash that was then given to a former student that Hastert may have sexually abused during the years he was a high school wrestling coach. He is also charged with subsequently lying to the FBI about those withdrawals. Each charge carries a possible sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
MSNBC reports that Hastert was ordered to surrender his passport, and that while the judge acknowledged a previous connection to Hastert, does not believe the "standard of disqualification has been met."