CHICAGO — Former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert has pleaded not guilty to charges in a federal hush-money case.
A federal judge set the conditions Tuesday for Hastert’s pretrial release after he pleaded not guilty in a hush-money case.
During Hastert’s first court appearance in the case since he was indicted last month, U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Durkin said he must not violate any laws, cooperate in collection of DNA if authorized by court and advise officials before changing his name or phone number.
Hastert’s defense attorney says the former House speaker has already surrendered his passport. He’s also required to have no contact with victims or witnesses in the case and have any firearms removed from his property by June 23.
The May 28 indictment says he agreed to pay $3.5 million to keep someone, referred to only as “Individual A,” from revealing a secret about past misconduct.
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