Next week, voters in Cook County – and particularly, the county’s Democratic Party voters - will select a host of new judges to sit on the bench in courts in Springfield, Chicago and the suburbs.
A number of organizations are asking voters to educate themselves on judicial candidates in the county and elsewhere before casting ballots in the 2020 primary election on March 17.
Tuesday, the Illinois Civil Justice League released its list of voter recommendations, which it calls its “judicial scorecard,” for the 2020 primary races. The scorecard evaluates candidates on a number of criteria and offers recommendations to voters on which candidates they should feel comfortable supporting.
ICJL President John Pastuovic
| Illinois Civil Justice League
The Illinois State Bar Associations also earlier released its recommendations in Illinois judicial races.
Among its recommendations, the ICJL particularly focused on the attempts by two judicial candidates to serve as apparent “stalking horse candidates, using their Irish surnames to siphon votes from other credible Irish-American candidates to benefit the candidacies of Cook County Democratic Party insiders.”
These candidates singled out by the ICJL report include Maureen O’Leary, who is running for a vacancy on the Illinois First District Appellate Court, and Bonnie McGrath, who is a candidate for a Cook County Circuit Court judgeship, to fill the vacancy of Judge Mary Anne Mason.
ICJL President John Pastuovic said both of the candidates "used many of the same paid circulators to gather signatures for their nominating petitions and both (had) reported zero campaign expenditures or fundraising as of earlier this month."
The two candidates had also been singled out by Injustice Watch in an article published last month by the Chicago Sun- Times.
"Other candidates, consultants and judges say McGrath and O’Leary appear to be sham candidates — running not to win but to confuse voters and benefit the Democratic Party’s pick," Injustice Watch said in its report.
Injustice Watch said McGrath responded to its assertions by email, saying: "I am running for judge to be a judge!"
O'Leary did not reply to Injustice Watch.
O’Leary is on the ballot as a Democrat, running against both Cook County Circuit Judge Carolyn Gallagher, Cook County Circuit Judge Sandra Gisela Ramos and Cook County Circuit Judge Michael B. Hyman, who has served on the Illinois First District Appellate Court since he was appointed in 2014.
However, Pastuovic said he believed O’Leary is on the ballot to help Hyman, who was officially endorsed by the Cook County Democratic Party and is “the Democratic Party chosen candidate” for the post, Pastuovic said.
The Illinois State Bar Association listed Hyman as “Highly Qualified” for the post. ISBA listed Gallagher, Ramos and O’Leary as “not qualified.”
In the race to fill the Mason vacancy on the Cook County court, the ICJL also asserted McGrath was placed on the six-candidate ballot to help “Democratic Party chosen candidate” Chris Stacey and three other opponents, including Arthur D. Sutton, Joy E. Tolbert Nelson and Joseph Chico.
Additionally, the ICJL warned voters against Sutton, giving him a rating of “not recommended.” According to the ICJL, Sutton has been “identified by Injustice Watch for ‘fac[ing] professional discipline for misconduct on multiple occasions’ in his work as deputy director in the parole division of the Illinois Department of Corrections where he ‘resigned under pressure in 2015 after his son was involved in two shootings using Sutton’s government-issued weapon.’”
McGrath also received a “not recommended” rating from ICJL.
McGrath and Chico were each rated “not qualified” by ISBA.
ISBA rated Callahan, Sutton and Nelson each as “qualified.”
ILLINOIS SUPREME COURT
In the race to fill the vacancy on the Illinois Supreme Court from Illinois First Judicial District, both ICJL and ISBA gave high plaudits to P. Scott Neville, a former Illinois Appellate justice who was appointed in 2019 to fill out the remainder of the final term for Justice Charles E. Freeman, the state’s first African American state Supreme Court justice. Freeman retired in 2018. He died earlier this year at the age of 86.
Neville was rated “Highly Recommended” by the ICJL.
ISBA rated Neville as “Highly Qualified.”
ISBA gave the same “Highly Qualified” rating to three of Neville’s opponents, including appellate justices Jesse G. Reyes, Margaret Stanton McBride and Nathaniel R. Howse.
Among other candidates for the ISBA rated Appellate Justice Cynthia Y. Cobbs as “Qualified;” attorney Daniel Epstein as “Not Recommended;” and Appellate Justice Shelly A. Harris as “Not Qualified.” ISBA said they did not believe Epstein had the experience needed to serve on the state Supreme Court. And the bar association said, during candidate evaluations “concerns were raised” about Harris’ “demeanor.”
Only Democratic voters in Cook County will be able to vote on the race to permanently replace Freeman on the state high court, as the state’s First District is limited to the county’s boundaries.
There are no Republican candidates on the ballot.
ILLINOIS FIRST DISTRICT APPELLATE COURT
In addition to the race to replace Justice Neville, voters in Cook County will also select a judge to replace Justice John B. Simon.
In this contest, candidates on the Democratic Party ballot include Cook County Circuit Judge John Griffin and Cook County Circuit Judge Sharon O. Johnson.
The ICJL rates Griffin as “Recommended.”
ISBA rates Griffin as “Highly Qualified” and Johnson as “Qualified.”
COOK COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT
In the various contests for countywide Cook County Circuit judgeships, the ICJL rated three candidates as “Highly Recommended.”
These three, all Democrats, include:
- Keely Patricia Hillison. The ICJL said Hillison, who is seeking the Murphy Gorman vacancy, is an “experienced defense litigator” and “accomplished attorney,” formerly of the firm of Parillo Weiss. The ICJL said Hillison “is running as an outsider against endorsed Democrat Judge Sheree Desiree Henry.” In a previous race for the bench, the ICJL had praised Hillison’s support for judicial reforms and limits on certain kinds of “baseless and harassing lawsuits.” ISBA, however, rated Hillison as “Not Qualified” and Henry as “Qualified.”
- Lloyd Brooks. The ICJL said Brooks, who has spent much of his legal career “representing homeowners in foreclosure court,” is “well-prepared for the bench.” “He is aware of the ‘anything goes’ attitude in Cook County and how it compares to proceedings in federal court,” the ICJL said. Brooks is seeking the vacancy of Judge Jessica Arong O’Brien, who was removed from office after she was convicted of taking part in a mortgage fraud scheme before she was elected as judge. ISBA rated Brooks as “Qualified.” He is opposed by attorneys Elizabeth A. Walsh and Heather A. Kent. Both of those candidates were also rated as “Qualified” by ISBA.
- Lorraine M. Murphy. In the race to fill the vacancy of Judge Thomas D. Roti, the ICJL said Murphy, a “cancer survivor and criminal prosecutor,” has “the requisite experience” for the judgeship. ISBA rated Murphy as “Qualified,” along with attorney James P. Crawley. Candidate and attorney Araceli Reyes De La Cruz was rated as “Not Qualified” by ISBA.
McCarthy was also rated as “Qualified” by ISBA. The bar association gave the same “Qualified” rating to each of the other candidates in the Coghlan vacancy race, including Elizabeth “Beth” Ryan; Aileen Bhandari; and James T. Derico.
In the race to fill the vacancy of Judge Raymond Funderburk, the ICJL rated attorney Daniel L. Collins as “Recommended.” The ICJL said Collins has “experience in a multitude of areas of legal practice” and a “positive rating from the Chicago Council of Lawyers.”
ISBA assigned Collins a “Qualified” rating, along with his three opponents in the race, Cook County Associate Judge Celestia L. Mays; and attorneys Mary T. Quinn and Jacqueline M. Griffin.
Other Cook County judicial candidates receiving “Highly Recommended” ratings from the ICJL include:
- Chelsey Robinson, to fill “Vacancy A,” in the county’s 2nd Judicial Subcircuit;
- Regina Mescall, to fill the vacancy of Judge Peter Flynn, in the 3rd Subcircuit; and
- Daniel Trevino, for the vacancy of Judge William T. O’Brien, in the 10th Subcircuit.
- Felicia Simmons-Stovall, in the 2nd Subcircuit;
- Kristen Lyons, in the 7th Subcircuit;
- Gary Seyring, a Republican, in the 13th Subcircuit;
- Gerardo Triston Jr., in the 14th Subcircuit; and
- Nichole Patton, in the 15th Subcircuit.