Will County Judge Who Shot Himself In Hand Last Year To Retire

JOLIET, IL - Will County Associate Judge Robert Brumund, who made headlines last year when he shot himself in the hand inside his Joliet home under questionable circumstances, has informed the Illinois Supreme Court that his time on the Will County bench is winding down. Will County's Chief Judge of Twelfth Judicial Circuit Richard Schoenstedt has posted an announcement of Brumund's upcoming vacancy at the Will County Courthouse. Brumund will be retiring effective January 14, the letter states. The application process will continue until 11:59 p.m. on November 27.

"Applications are now being accepted for this vacancy which will be filled by vote of the Circuit Judges in the Twelfth Judicial Circuit," states Schoenstedt's letter, which is posted on the Illinois Courts website.

Brumund has been a Will County judge since 2005. He has been assigned to handle family court including child custody and divorce matters.

RELATED: Judge Doesn't Want To Talk About How He Shot Himself In Hand

Last year, Joliet Patch reported that Brumund was sporting a heavily bandaged hand the Monday following the non-fatal shooting.

“You don’t have to write about that,” Brumund told the Patch editor at the time. “It’s none of your business."

When the Chicago Tribune got a hold of the judge for comment, Brumund told the reporter that no else was injured and that his hand was fine. "It's an unfortunate accident that occurred when I was handling my gun," he said, according to the Tribune story. "(It was) a stupid incident."

Joliet police officials told the Tribune that Brumund said he had just returned home that Saturday afternoon from a shooting range and that his gun discharged as he was preparing to clean it.

For those of you who wondering if anybody can become a Will County judge, the simple answer is no.

"Pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 39, any attorney, who is a United States citizen, is licensed to practice law in Illinois and is a resident of the Twelfth Judicial Circuit may apply by electronically filing a signed application with the Director of the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts ..." the website states.

The Twelfth Circuit consists of Will County.

Image via John Ferak, Joliet Patch Editor