Bio Box: US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald
May 24, 2012, 1:28 PM
CHICAGO (AP) – NAME: Patrick J. Fitzgerald
AGE: 51
BORN IN: Brooklyn, N.Y., the son of a Manhattan doorman.
EDUCATION: Graduated from Amherst College in 1982 with a bachelor’s degree in economics and mathematics. Graduated from Harvard Law School in 1985.
CAREER: Joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan in 1988 after working for a New York law firm. Appointed top federal prosecutor for the Northern District of Illinois by President George W. Bush in September 2001.
FAMILY: Wife, school teacher Jennifer Letzkus, two young children.
QUOTE: “We’re trying to send a deterrent message to people not to commit the crimes, but we’re also trying to send a message that if people have done wrong, that they wake up, smell the coffee and work with us,” Fitzgerald said, explaining why Tony Rezko, a former fundraiser for ousted Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, got a harsh 10 1/2-year prison sentence after refusing to cooperate with prosecutors until after his conviction.
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