St. Clair County Associate Judge Laninya Cason has sat on the bench since 2003 and, even prior to switching from the Democratic to the Republican party (as a means of political survival), she had a rocky relationship with the St. Clair County bar. And a recent poll reflects their disdain for Cason.
In the latest reappointment poll by the Illinois State Bar Association, Judge Cason received a 45.83 in the category of “meets requirements of office” – the lowest score of all 13 associate judges in the 20th circuit. She was the only judge not recommended for retention.
The annual, anonymous poll is distributed to all of the attorneys in St. Clair County who are members of the bar.
What’s interesting is that 75 percent of the attorneys participating in the poll indicated that they had never appeared before Judge Cason.
Then, you may ask, how can they even rate Judge Cason if they’ve never appeared in her courtroom? I would submit that they cannot, at least not fairly.
So, then, what is the basis for their rating of Judge Cason and others? The answer, I believe, is like most things in St. Clair County: “poli-tricks.”
The ultimate decision on associate judge reappointments is made by circuit judges who cast secret ballots, not by the bar poll.
However, is it possible that the bar’s voting, as well as that of the circuit judges, is influenced by politicians and circuit judges within the circuit court, namely St. Clair County Chief Judge John Baricevic? Absolutely.
Can that be proved? Not likely, particularly when such a covert process is utilized in the reappointment process.
I recently participated on a panel addressing the subject of black male incarceration, convened and facilitated by Judge Cason. Chief Judge Baricevic sat in the audience. I watched as he grimaced and appeared quite displeased as he heard statistics and historical facts pointing to judicial bias, double standards and, indeed, racism in the sentencing and incarceration of black males nationally and in St. Clair County.
So it is easy for me to understand the possible motivation for punishing Judge Cason, who left a party which had abandoned her, for having the audacity to organize a panel of scholars, judges and journalists who further revealed the inherent biases and prejudices within St. Clair County and the courts.
“Politics should not have any bearing on how I do my job,” Judge Cason said. “Everybody is here to be fair and impartial. However, with my being black and from East St. Louis, many people felt offended when I switched parties. But when I see the shuttered Schnucks store at 25th and State Street, I realize that black people aren’t worried about Democrat or Republican. Party affiliation is irrelevant to the notion of justice and equality.”
Too bad the lawyers have the luxury of voting against Judge Cason, without knowing her, and circuit judges (who do know her) have anonymity in stabbing her in the back at will, as the chief judge minces words and hides behind polls and secret votes.
Email: jtingram_1960@yahoo.com; Twitter@JamesTIngram.
