Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert dies at 84
publishers 38articles 38first reported 5 Oct, 12:49 UTCdeveloping since 5 Oct · 9 editionstop 25 #7
Dennis Hastert, the longest-serving Republican speaker of the U.S. House and a former congressman who later went to prison in a case tied to sexual abuse of teenage boys, has died at 84.
Hastert died of natural causes over the weekend at his Illinois home, Kendall County Coroner Jacquie Purcell said Monday. NPR reported that he was receiving hospice care.
An Illinois Republican, Hastert represented the state’s 14th Congressional District from 1987 to 2007 and served as House speaker from 1999 to 2007. He was elevated to the position after Newt Gingrich stepped down and Rep. Bob Livingston withdrew from consideration. As speaker, Hastert helped advance President George W. Bush’s agenda, including tax cuts and an expansion of Medicare prescription-drug benefits.
Before entering politics, Hastert was a teacher and wrestling coach in Yorkville, Illinois. In 2015, he was charged with illegally structuring cash withdrawals to conceal payments to a former student. Hastert pleaded guilty to violating banking laws and was sentenced in 2016 to 15 months in prison.
Prosecutors said the payments were intended to conceal Hastert’s sexual abuse of at least four teenage boys during his coaching career. He was not charged with sexual abuse because the statute of limitations had expired. At sentencing, Hastert acknowledged mistreating athletes he coached and apologized; the judge called him a “serial child molester.” He was released from a prison hospital in 2017.
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