Each of these six individuals who have filed in the Democratic primary is already a sitting Cook County Circuit Court judge.
In alphabetical order, these are Judges Marina E. Ammendola (appointed to, and currently running for, the countywide K. Sheehan vacancy), Fredrick H. Bates (appointed to, and currently running for, the 1st Subcircuit Brooks vacancy), Michael A. Forti (appointed to, and currently running for, the Gubin vacancy in the 8th Subcircuit), Celestina L. Mays (appointed to, and currently running as the Democratic Party's slated candidate for, the countywide Funderburk vacancy), Levander "Van" Smith, Jr. (appointed to, and currently running as the Democratic Party's slated candidate for, the countywide Larsen vacancy), and Daniel O. Tiernan (appointed to, and currently running for, the Lacy vacancy in the 14th Subcircuit).
Each of these judges faces the happy choice of deciding whether to continue their campaign for full circuit judge or whether to withdraw their candidacy now that they have been selected as associated judges.
If each were to continue their campaigns -- and ultimately win election -- a new round of associate judge selection would be automatically triggered. (Per Illinois Supreme Court Rule 39, Cook County is supposed to start a new selection round once there are five associate judge vacancies.)
Not all of the appointed judges on the associate judge short list were selected. Judge Lloyd James Brooks, appointed to, and currently running as the Democratic Party's slated candidate for, the countywide O'Brien vacancy, was passed over by his colleagues, as was Judge Tyria B. Walton. Of course, Judge Walton is presumably not too disappointed by this, inasmuch as she was the only candidate to file for what is being called the Crawford vacancy in the 1st Subcircuit, the seat to which the Supreme Court appointed her. Her path to election is virtually assured.
Another countywide slated candidate, albeit one who is not yet a judge, Laura Ayala-Gonzalez, was also not selected yesterday as an associate judge.
In fact, none of the three Hispanic candidates on this year's Short List made the final cut, a circumstance that the Puerto Rican Bar Association denounced as "disgraceful" in a press release issued last evening. John Seasly, in a post on Injustice Watch, quoted former Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois President Juan Morado, Jr. as saying the judges' failure to choose even one Hispanic associate judge was "a huge disappointment."
Interestingly, according to the Injustice Watch article, only seven of the 193 applicants who remained after the Nominating Committee concluded its interviews were Hispanic. Thirty percent of the applicants were "people of color," according to the Injustice Watch article, about the same percentage as on the Cook County bench in 2018.
Three former Presidents of the Cook County Bar Association were among those chosen in this class of associate judges (Bates, Mays, and John A. Fairman).
There were an unusually high number of persons on this year's Short List (11) who'd been finalists before (10 from last year's class; one, Judge Forti, from the 2014 list). Seven of those 11, including Forti, were successful this year.
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Updating to add a link to the Illinois Supreme Court's press release on the new class of associate judges.
If you are currently running in a subcircuit and pursued the AJ appointment, why not just take the AJ and run? Why bother campaigning anymore or stay in a race just to spite the other candidates. Being an AJ has so many advantages. You get to live where you want, you get to be a judge without the added responsibility, the difference in salary is minuscule, and you don’t have to bother with campaign disclosures and all that nonsense. You can also get your money back and but it in the bank where you will be earning interest as opposed to keeping it tied up in the campaign. You also invite good karma by being one less in the race and letting others do what they need to do. But even if that is not enough, isn’t it better to have your colleagues retain you in 4 years than to be subjected to the stress of having to get 60% of the vote from the general public? Do the classy thing and just take the AJ, drop out and be done with it. No one likes the person who stands in two lines at checkout.
ReplyDeleteSlates are the new thing of the future. I just came up with another innovative way to use one. Not my idea, but one that someone else gave me. No wonder he ordered all of those petitions sheets. Now it all makes sense. What a devil he is indeed.
ReplyDeleteWhen are Associates sworn in?
ReplyDeleteUhhhhmmmm, Anon 12/6/2019 @1:01 you are entitled to your opinions, but please be certain to sprinkle in some facts for context. What is the "added responsibility" to which you refer? There is no substantive difference in the job duties of an AJ and circuit. Hell, most lawyers don't know the difference between an AJ and a circuit. How does a candidate get their money back? I would like to get my money back. Where do I go to do so? Preckwinkle and Evans sure as hell ain't giving me my money back. The money is already spent. And if your goal is simply to be on the ballot, then mission accomplished. One need not spend additional sums of money to be on the ballot. Good karma? Please. Not in this game. In this game, it's all about "hedging bets" and "what have you done for me lately?" And the last time I checked, circuits care only about one thing and that is Number One. The public might have tossed Coghlan last cycle. But the circuits tossed an AJ in 2019.
ReplyDeleteSo, in sum, it's every rat for itself. Some just want a robe. Some want robes and ego. When you are in a system where everybody essentially makes the same amount of money, power and prestige are the only currency. AJ's are the lowest members of the caste system. They know it and only take solace in the fact that they don't have to bill hours anymore and have their nights and weekends to themselves. That, five weeks vacation and a pension. Even if you drop a loaded gun walking in the hallways of Leighton Criminal Courts Building.
If you really want to sell someone on getting out, say this: "damn these m'f'ers [voters, opponents, both] are crazy. If you drop out now, you will never have to engage with them ever again!"
Anyone foolish enough to cut deals with some of these soon-to-be associate judges, thinking they could slip in as circuits, are naive. Any of theses soon-to-be associate judges who made promises to get their job security are very likely cutting their own throats if they don’t honor their deals. For those of you lucky few who are neither self-destructive nor naive, enjoy your destination vacation in February. I am not running. But I will be out there circulating petitions for a slate of independent candidates who will pose a challenge to any Democrat or Republican running for circuit court in the November 2020 general election. Everybody gets an opponent this cycle. No exceptions. No deals. People without hope are people without fear.
ReplyDeletePetitions hit the streets March 18, 2020. Applications for the slate are now being taken. Better yet, create your own slate. The more the merrier. Jack lamented how we didn’t have Republicans file. Don’t need them. We need an Independent Judiciary beholden to no one. Not to Burke. Not to Madigan. Not to Preckwinkle. Not to Evans. So choose your slate mates and get your petitions ready for 3/18/2020.
Public Defenders
States Attorneys
Large Law Firms
Latinex
Blacks
Irish
Asians
Gays
Lesbians
Whatever
Pick one, pick all. This is not anarchy. This is paradigm shift. Meet the brave new world.
If one person wins this way, it changes this game forever. So ask yourself this: What do you have to lose? Has this system worked for you so far?
Rogue One
@ Anonymous Friday, December 06, 2019 1:46:00 PM You are so naive. Coghlan was just the beginning. The public will be coming for more Circuits. AJs lowest in the caste system? Who cares, the public can't touch them.
ReplyDeleteJaaaaaaaaaaaccccccckkkkkkkkkkk! It's been over three weeks. Feed us.
ReplyDelete30 days without fresh content. Is FWIW going off line?
ReplyDeleteDon't mean to be morbid, but if you are still alive please post. Some of us are beginning to think you died.
ReplyDelete