By John Gregory/Illinois Radio Network

CHICAGO – The next step in the appeals process has been taken by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

Blagojevich’s attorneys have filed a petition asking the full 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear his appeal, after a three-judge panel upheld 13 of the 18 corruption convictions against the ex-governor.

In order for the request to be granted, one of the nine appellate judges would have to ask for a vote, then a majority of judges would have to favor rehearing the appeal.

Former Gov. George Ryan had also asked the full court to rehear his appeal of his own criminal convictions, but that request was denied. If Blagojevich’s petition is rejected, his final option would be to take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.

In a statement, Blagojevich addressed what he saw as flaws in his conviction.

“What is at stake is nothing less than the rule of law. I urge the media and the public to please read the court filing carefully,” Blagojevich said. “Fundraising is a part of the job of every politician. The jury instructions used to convict me in my case are not the law. It makes the standard so low that any politician can be jailed at the whim of an ambitious prosecutor. That standard is wrong and needs to be corrected.”