Judge arrested for DUI in Hinsdale, reassigned to judges' jail

Cook County Associate Judge Mohammed M. Ghouse was arrested by Hinsdale Police on November 23. He has been charged with DUI in DuPage County. Yesterday, Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans entered an order assigning Judge Ghouse to restricted, aministrative duties -- colloquially referred to as "judges' jail."

A Hinsdale-Clarendon Hills Patch news story, by David Giuliani, about the arrest and subsequent reassignment is available at this link. Tribune subscribers (of which I am not one) can access this article.

A statement from Judge Evans was issued late yesterday afternoon. Here is that statement in full:

On November 23, 2021, the Hinsdale Police Department filed a “DUI Criminal Complaint” against Associate Judge Mohammed M. Ghouse in the Illinois circuit court for DuPage County, alleging that, on November 23, 2021, Judge Ghouse was driving under the influence of alcohol and was driving too fast for conditions or failed to reduce speed to avoid an accident.

Today, I have issued an order assigning Judge Ghouse to restricted duties in the Office of First Municipal District Presiding Judge E. Kenneth Wright, Jr., where he will perform administrative duties only, subject to further order of the court. The order is effective immediately.

I have also ordered that this matter be referred to the Judicial Inquiry Board.

My decision follows a meeting of the Circuit Court of Cook County Executive Committee, held on Wednesday, December 1, 2021, to discuss the matter.

Up until the date of his arrest, Judge Ghouse had been fulfilling his assignment in the Fifth Municipal District in Bridgeview, Illinois.

The members of the Executive Committee who participated in the meeting held December 1, 2021, were as follows:

• Honorable Timothy C. Evans, Chief Judge
• Honorable Moshe Jacobius, Presiding Judge, Chancery Division
• Honorable Sanjay T. Tailor, Acting Presiding Judge, County Division
• Honorable Erica L. Reddick, Acting Presiding Judge, Criminal Division
• Honorable Grace G. Dickler, Presiding Judge, Domestic Relations Division
• Honorable Raul Vega, Presiding Judge, Domestic Violence Division
• Honorable David Navarro, Acting Presiding Judge, Pretrial Division
• Honorable Daniel B. Malone, Acting Presiding Judge, Probate Division
• Honorable Diann K. Marsalek, Acting Presiding Judge, Traffic Division
• Honorable Robert Balanoff, Acting Presiding Judge, Child Protection Division
• Honorable Michael P. Toomin, Presiding Judge, Juvenile Justice Division
• Honorable Sophia H. Hall, Administrative Presiding Judge, Juvenile Justice and Child Protection Resource Section
• Honorable E. Kenneth Wright, Jr., Presiding Judge, First Municipal District
• Honorable Shelley Sutker-Dermer, Presiding Judge, Second Municipal District
• Honorable Jill C. Marisie, Presiding Judge, Third Municipal District
• Honorable Cheyrl D. Ingram, Presiding Judge, Fourth Municipal District
• Honorable Kerry M. Kennedy, Acting Presiding Judge, Fifth Municipal District
• Honorable Tommy Brewer, Presiding Judge, Sixth Municipal District

The outcome of the Executive Committee's JIB referral will not be made public unless the JIB brings charges before the Illinois Courts Commission. Historically, although (for reasons of confidentiality -- see Article VI, Section 15(c) of the 1970 Illinois Constitution, as amended) there are no statistics that I know of, the vast majority of referrals do not result in public charges. That charges were not pursued by JIB may sometimes be inferred from subsequent events. (Additional information about the work of the JIB can be found at this website.)

Ghouse became an Associate Judge in 2016.

This may also be an opportune moment to remind readers that the Lawyers Assistance Program is available to help "Illinois judges, lawyers, law students, and their families concerned about alcohol use, drug dependency, or stress related issues like anxiety, burnout, [or] depression."