The Illinois Courts Commission recently punished two McLean County Circuit Judges for conduct related to an affair they had. Judge Scott Drazewski has been suspended for four months for not removing himself from cases in which the husband of Judge Rebecca Foley was representing clients. Drazewski also lied about his reason for eventually asking to be removed from other cases. Foley was censured for not reporting Drazewski's failure to recuse himself.
Lost amid the salacious aspects of the case is the institutional response. It took about two years to for the case to go to investigators and more than three for the case to go public.
Judicial Inquiry Board investigators noted that a group of Associate Judges in the circuit heard rumors of the affair and the potential for bringing discredit on the legal system. But, they were reluctant to report it themselves. Investigators wrote that the Associate Judges feared that the circuit judges would punish them by refusing to reappoint them. GLT's Charlie Schlenker talks with lawyer and ISU legal affairs Professor Tom McClure about that reaction.
Read the entire order in the case involving Judges Scott Drazewski and Rebecca Foley.
