From the Tribune:

US DISTRICT COURT
Fawell testimony helps cut sentence by 4 months

Published March 16, 2007

A federal judge on Thursday reduced the prison term of Scott Fawell by 4 months for his cooperation against former Gov. George Ryan and others--not quite the 6-month cut Fawell had sought.

Fawell, who was chief of staff to Ryan during his scandal-scarred tenure as secretary of state, was sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison in 2003 after a jury convicted him on racketeering and fraud charges.

He has been incarcerated since November 2003 in a federal prison camp in Yankton, S.D. Before Thursday's decision by U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer, he was scheduled to be released in July 2009, according to U.S. Bureau of Prisons records.

Fawell's lawyer, Jeffrey Steinback, said that it was uncertain when Fawell might now be released, but that it likely wouldn't be before early next year. Fawell would be released to a halfway house before he was given his freedom, Steinback said.

Fawell is taking part in an alcohol-treatment program that could cut his prison sentence even further if he completes it satisfactorily.

As a result of Fawell's cooperation, his fiance, Alexandra "Andrea" Coutretsis, a former aide, received a reduced 4-month prison sentence, and Fawell's separate conviction for corruption at the public agency that runs McCormick Place carried a concurrent prison term.

"It has been a long road for me," Fawell said during a videoconference from Yankton. "I've already lost my father during this."