Illinois judges in the news

Articles: Overview (click on link for complete article)

Lawyer-rating site loses Supreme Court battle (7/16/2008)
Ban on moment of silence in school expanded Chicago Tribune, 5/29/08. A temporary ban on an Illinois law requiring a moment of silence at the start of the school day was expanded Thursday to apply to all school districts across the state. The decision by U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman will remain in place while a legal challenge alleging the law is unconstitutional moves forward. Gettleman previously halted the law from being observed in Township High School District 214 in Chicago's northwest suburbs after atheist activist Rob Sherman challenged the law on behalf of his daughter, Dawn, a student at Buffalo Grove High School.
Appeals court judge Zimmer to retire (5/27/2008)
The New Politics of Judicial Elections in the Great Lakes States, 2000–2008
Judge benched after DUI charge 5/21/08, Chicago Sun Times. A Cook County judge accused of drunken driving has been reassigned to "administrative duties," the county's chief judge announced Tuesday. Sheila McGinnis, 47, slammed her SUV into a minivan carrying five people earlier this month in Tinley Park, police say. No one was injured in the crash. Moments before the crash, McGinnis' 2004 Chevrolet Trailblazer was seen weaving and striking the curb. Police said McGinnis was also flashing her headlights and honking her horn. McGinnis refused sobriety tests. Judge Timothy C. Evans said McGinnis would be reassigned "until further notice."