YORKVILLE – The identity of a man listed as James Doe in court documents could be revealed during the trial of a $1.8 million breach of contract lawsuit between him and former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert.
Kristi Browne, Doe’s lawyer, said she anticipates her client to give testimony, should the case go to trial the week of Nov. 18. She said Chief Judge Robert Pilmer is currently allowing photography and audio recording in the courtroom, should Doe give testimony during the trial.
“We haven’t decided yet whether to file a motion to change that, but that’s currently the status,” Browne said.
Doe is suing Hastert for not paying in full an allegedly agreed upon $3.5 million in hush money and has accused Hastert of sexually abusing him when Hastert was a teacher at Yorkville High School. The arrangement ultimately led to federal banking charges against Hastert, who served 13 months in federal prison on those charges.
Doe is suing Hastert for $1.8 million plus interest from December 2014 to the date of payment, in the lawsuit that has been in court for more than two years, according to court documents. Hastert allegedly paid Doe $1.7 million between 2010 and 2014, according to court documents.
Browne had said she and her client are anticipating the case will go to trial and are preparing for that outcome regardless. It is unclear whether Hastert will give testimony during the trial, should it come to that. John Ellis, Hastert’s lawyer, did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Shaw Media.
Pilmer denied a motion for clarification from Ellis in court Wednesday, Oct. 2, according to court documents. The aforementioned motion was in response to Pilmer’s denial of a summary judgment in the case Sept. 10.
Pilmer said during the Wednesday hearing he doesn’t believe Hastert can come back and seek to deny the existence of an agreement or to claim the agreement should be held for naught.
“He, in a written document, acknowledged the existence of his agreement with individual A, who the court believes is the plaintiff in this matter, and that he went into some detail about the existence of the nature of that agreement and what had occurred,” Pilmer said.
Pilmer also privately met with both attorneys outside of the courtroom after the Wednesday hearing.
Pilmer is set to hear arguments for motions in limine, or requests for certain testimony to be excluded from the trial, later this month, according to court documents. Browne and Ellis said they both intend to file their own motions in limine for the case during the Wednesday hearing.
The update comes after Pilmer denied a motion to allow lawyers for Doe to share a confidential deposition from Hastert with federal officials.
The next court date is 1 p.m. Oct. 29 at the Kendall County Courthouse.
Source: The Daily Chronicle
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