Judge released from Judge's Jail

Associate Judge Gregory E. Ahern, Jr. has been returned to active judicial duty.

In an Order entered Tuesday (Special Order No. 2023-126), the Executive Committee of the Circuit Court of Cook County stated, in pertinent part:

The Executive Committee of the circuit court of Cook County having convened to consider the request of Hon. Gregory E. Ahern, Jr., pursuant to Ill.S.Ct.R. 56(c), that Cook County Cir. Ct. Special Order 2023-121 (eff. Aug. 25, 2023) be vacated and that Judge Ahem be returned to his previous judicial assignments;

The Judicial Inquiry Board having informed this court, on September 11 ,2023, that it had concluded its investigation of the allegations made against Judge Ahern, that no further action is warranted, and that the Board deems the matters that were the subject of Special Order 2023-121 to be closed;

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Cook County Cir. Ct. Special Order 2023-121 (eff. Aug. 25, 2023) is vacated....

Ahern had been banished to Judge's Jail on account of allegedly "express[ing] his agreement with, or support for, comments by other persons [on X, f/k/a Twitter] that can reasonably be interpreted as suggesting a bias or prejudice that demeans individuals based upon their race, gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation." The content of the Tweet that Judge Ahern may have 'liked' on X were not publicly shared. The identify of the "established local media outlet" that complained about Ahern was likewise not disclosed.

FWIW readers who have not already done so may be interested in reviewing the provisions of the new Code of Judicial Conduct (collected in this post) that potentially apply to a jurist's use of social media.