A conservative judge can continue his free speech lawsuit against the Illinois Supreme Court, according to a federal ruling.
Judge James Brown is suing the state supreme court for removing him from a one-year assignment as a Cook County traffic court judge. The Illinois Supreme Court appointed Brown, a retired judge, to help clear a backlog of cases.
Though he cleared 1,000 cases in just six weeks, he soon found himself removed after two left-wing groups objected to comments he made against transgenderism and in support of Trump, as Legal Insurrection previously reported. The court did not give him an opportunity to defend himself through a formal hearing.
District Court Judge Edmond Chang denied Brown’s request for a preliminary injunction but said his free speech case can continue according to a decision released yesterday.
Judge Chang agreed that “it is plausible for Brown to allege that he was speaking as a private citizen on matters of public concern.”
On one hand, Chang agreed “no record evidence shows, or even hints, that Brown made decisions as to the specific litigants or specific issues before him based on his political views, rather than on the law and facts.”
Yet Chang said the Illinois Supreme Court may have acted reasonably in removing Brown, since it is possible his comments would create the impression of impartiality.
The district court judge pointed to Brown’s agreement to refrain from political commentary while on the bench.
“At the preliminary-injunction hearing, Brown acknowledged that he would not make similar statements to those in the column if he were to be reinstated as a judge because it would be inappropriate to write anything political until after his term was finished,” the ruling stated.
Still, Chang looked critically at Brown’s comments about Kim Foxx, the former top prosecutor for Cook County.
The Liberty Justice Center, which is representing Brown, said the ruling is an important step forward.
“A federal court just confirmed that Judge Brown has viable First Amendment and due-process claims after he was removed from the bench without notice or a hearing,” the legal advocacy group wrote on X.
“The court did not reinstate him today — but it rejected the effort to dismiss his case,” the group wrote. “This fight is far from over.”
https://x.com/LJCenter/status/2061615123614093386?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Brown seeks reinstatement to the bench and damages for the “lost pension value and expenses borne out of returning to the bench only to be wrongfully removed forty-two days later.”
[Featured image from the Liberty Justice Center]
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