On Tuesday, September 10, 2024, the Chicago Sun Times reported that former Cook County Associate Judge William Raines is facing a new complaint from the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC). This comes after Raines resigned from his position as a judge in 2022 due to a prior incident where he made inappropriate comments about a lawyer during a virtual court hearing that was accidentally broadcast live on YouTube.

The ARDC complaint alleges that Raines violated ethics rules through his conduct during the incident. At the time, prominent defense attorney Jennifer Bonjean was representing a client, Roosevelt Myles, during a wrongful conviction case hearing conducted over Zoom that Raines was overseeing. After Bonjean left the virtual proceedings, Raines began speaking to other participants and made belittling remarks about Bonjean’s demeanor in court, describing her as “going nuts” and commenting on her physical appearance. He then said “Can you imagine waking up next to her every day? Oh, my God!” apparently unaware the discussion was still being livestreamed.

This incident led to an investigation by the Judicial Inquiry Board, an agency tasked with investigating claims of judicial misconduct. That probe resulted in charges being filed against Raines for “conduct that was prejudicial to the administration of justice.” Although Raines stepped down from his judgeship in 2022, the new ARDC complaint centers around these same actions, also accusing him of violating ethics rules.

In response, Raines—who had been a registered attorney in Illinois since 1993 prior to his election as a judge in 2014—filed an answer on admitting to making the statements but denying any wrongdoing. It remains unknown if Raines has continued practicing law since resigning or if further discipline will be pursued by the ARDC through its investigation and adjudication processes, which can potentially lead to disbarment.

The report notes several other examples in recent years of Cook County judges facing investigations or complaints yet avoiding penalties by resigning from their positions, including former judges Mauricio Araujo and William Hooks. As the case is referred to the ARDC, the next steps and any resulting discipline for Raines’s past conduct remain unclear.

 

 

Source: Chicago Sun Times