A Chicago federal appeals court denied a request from imprisoned former Illinois Gov. George Ryan that the three-judge panel rehear his plea for a early prison release. The appeals court released a three-sentence statement that did not explain the denial.

Last month, a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals turned down Ryan's early release request for his six-and-a-half year sentence on a federal bribery conviction. Ryan, scheduled to be released next July, contends that he now qualifies for a work release program that would let him to stay at a Chicago halfway house.