Judge Found Guilty Of Fraud Argues For Keeping Job During Appeal

CHICAGO — A Cook County judge found guilty of mortgage fraud by a federal jury earlier this year argues that she should not be removed from her $200,000-a-year job until she has exhausted her appeals. In a response to the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission's attempt to take away the judge's law license, a lawyer for the embattled judge said the Illinois Supreme Court has no power to remove judges from office under the state constitution.

Circuit Judge Jessica Arong O'Brien, 50, of Chicago, was elected in 2012 to a six-year term ending in December. She was the first Filapina judge to be elected to the bench in the county and she's married to another Cook County judge.

O'Brien was convicted of bank fraud and mail fraud both felonies following a trial in February. She was accused of pocketing $325,000 as part of a $1.4 million mortgage fraud scheme that took place between 2004 and 2007.

A co-defendant who admitted operating as a straw buyer out of a Lincolnwood mortgage company pleaded guilty in January. Prosecutors alleged O'Brien of a pattern of lies as she bought, sold and refinanced investment properties on Chicago's South Side.

Since her indictment last year, O'Brien has been assigned to desk duties. That's the stiffest discipline the county courts can impose on an elected judge. And even though state law forbids convicted felons from holding elected office, O'Brien's attorney Thomas McGarry argued it would violate the judge's due process rights to due process to fire her.

The ARDC, state licensing agency for lawyers, claimed taking away O'Brien's law license in order to stop her from acting as a judge was necessary "for the purpose of protecting the public, the integrity of the legal profession and the judiciary, and the administration of justice," according to an answer filed Tuesday.

"[U]nder the circumstances, before the court of public opinion, [the ARDC's] arguments seem compelling," McGarry wrote, before laying out why O'Brien should stay on the bench anyway.

Even if the justices found they have the power to discipline a sitting judge, he recommended considering O'Brien's civil rights.

"Notwithstanding the jury's verdict, [she] maintains her innocence. She is on a briefing schedule to file motions that, if granted, would exonerate her of the alleged crimes," McGarry noted.

O'Brien's lawyer argued that if his client had not been a judge, her legal entanglements could have resulted in the suspension on her license to practice law, which she has held since 1998. However, since full-time judges are prohibited from practicing law from the bench anyway, he asked the justices to let her keep the license.

McGarry also said the Illinois Constitution lays out specific limitations on how judges can be removed from office.

The Illinois Court Commission has the authority to censure, suspend or remove judges, according to the state constitution. It's make up of one supreme court justice, four other judges and two citizens.

The Judicial Inquiry Board, which refers cases to the commission, does not comment on pending complaints before they are officially filed. If the board has already received a complaint against O'Brien, it has not yet been referred to the commission.

O'Brien has until May 14 to file post-trial motions. Her sentencing hearing in the federal fraud case is set for July 6.

Related:

• 'Trailblazing' Judge Indicted on Fraud Charges
  
• Cook County Judge Faces Trial On Federal Fraud Charges
  
• Judge Convicted Of Mortgage Fraud By Federal Jury