Judicial Horror Story - Just in Time for Halloween

[LegalScholar]

Judge Cannon's Rap

By David Protess, Huffington Post

Outside of legal circles, it is a little known fact that judges, like criminal defendants, have "rap sheets" -- cases involving past misconduct. A judge's "priors" include everything from reversals by higher courts to biases documented in court-reported transcripts. It is useful information for lawyers on both sides to have when a case is assigned to a particular judge.

The rap sheet for the Hon. Diane Gordon Cannon, an imperious Cook County criminal court judge, is becoming the stuff of legends. As I have reported, Judge Cannon, 58, wrongfully jailed a Serbian immigrant who was freed when high-ranking judges intervened; berated and locked-up a young mother of three for using a cellphone from a washroom to check on her disabled child; harshly sentenced exonerated death row inmate Anthony Porter to a year in prison for shoplifting four sticks of deodorant; and, repeatedly delayed a hearing for an innocent man until he died alone in his prison cell.

If this were not troubling enough, wait until you hear what Judge Cannon did in the case of Chad Johnson...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-protess/judge-cannon-redux_b_4125455.html?utm_hp_ref=chicago

[LegalScholar]

1. Two Additional Judge Cannon Stories

If you didn't get your fill of Judge Cannon, here's more:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-protess/cook-county-judge-a-loose_b_3973197.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-protess/judge-cannon-badly-misfires_b_4097869.html

[Jackpine Radical]

2. How do you get access to a given judge's "rap sheet?"

[David Protess]

3. A judge's rap sheet

Getting a judge's rap sheet is no easy matter. For my articles about Judge Cannon, I used Lexis and other database searches and conducted interviews with lawyers who practiced before her. Trouble is, the same court system that keeps detailed rap sheets on criminal defendants does not do the same for the authorities who decide their fate. I am talking with lawyers about a research project that would allow us to do that, and of course make it available to the public.

[gopiscrap]

4. Welcome to DU

[gopiscrap]

5. thank you it's hard to weed out misconduct

by the judiciary because they make the rules and cover each others butt!

[LegalScholar]

13. You've got that right!

[MindPilot]

6. Thank you for working on this.

Welcome to DU!!

I have witnessed judges say horrible, racist remarks. A federal judge sentencing illegal immigrants, who told a man who was about to spend four years in federal custody before being deported, "I know you are not here to rape and pillage, but we just can't have your kind in our country"

[LuvNewcastle]

9. Welcome to DU, and good luck in your work.

[LegalScholar]

11. What an honor!

Thanks for dropping by, Mr. Protess.

Others please take a look at the Chicago Innocence Project's website:

http://www.chicagoinnocenceproject.org/

[okaawhatever]

14. Is there anything DU members can do to advance this story? (other than paste a

link on every facebook page?) Is there a petition? I noticed Legal Scholar gave a link for the innocence project. please let us know what we can do.

[LegalScholar]

15. Good question

Judge Cannon is up for retention on the ballot in 2014. Mainstream media still hasn't touched this story. How do voters find out about her?

[LegalScholar]

18. You're right...

...we need an action plan!

[HappyMe]

7. k&r

[trumad]

8. Great piece David

And welcome.

[LegalScholar]

10. Here's a photo of Judge Cannon

I would say this photo was taken a decade or more ago...

http://tinyurl.com/qdfzm42

[LegalScholar]

12. *shameless self bump*

[LegalScholar]

16. How many more Judge Cannon stories are out there?

I wonder...

[LegalScholar]

17. The terrifying reason behind 75 percent of wrongful convictions

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tedtalks/mystery-of-memory_b_4159290.html