In settlement of rare lawsuit by Cook County Circuit Court’s chief judge against the county, courts win right to decide how budget cuts in court system are enacted; Cook County wins some, but not all, budget cuts it sought.
Cook County’s new group of associate judges includes candidates whose backgrounds are Greek, Asian, Hispanic, Jewish, and more. But not one of the 16 judges already selected are African-American. The 17th seat, still to be filled, will go to one of two black men — leaving black women excluded.
The 16 new Cook County associate judges announced by the state court system on Monday include five who had lost primary elections at the polling place in March. But a vote by the county’s circuit judges has rewarded them with seats on the bench in any event.
State court officials plan to install equipment that will record eviction court hearings. But timing is not certain. In the meantime, tenants remain without record of what occurred, making appeals difficult.