Most states use a “Model Code” to regulate judicial
conduct, including how judges communicate their political ideas and how judges solicit
campaign donations. Illinois has no such regulation—the last time it did
anything in this regard was 1994 (The Model Code was revised in 2007 to take
account of the hyper-growth of money in judicial campaigns.)
Consider this direct comparison between the more
stringent ABA Model Code and Illinois Code:
American Bar Ass’n, Side-by-Side Text Comparison, 2007 Model
Code of Judicial Conduct with Comparable Provisions of 1990 Code, at http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/migrated/cpr/pic/new_old.authcheckdam.pdf, stating:
Rule 1.2, Canon 2, Promoting
Confidence in the Judiciary
A judge
shall act at all times in a manner
that promotes public confidence in the independence,
integrity, and impartiality of the
judiciary, and shall avoid
impropriety and the appearance of impropriety (emphasis added).
In
contrast, see the less restrictive language
in Illinois Judicial Ethics Committee, Code of Judicial Conduct, Rule 62, Canon
2:
A Judge Should Avoid Impropriety and the Appearance of Impropriety in All
of the Judge’s Activities
A. A judge should respect and comply with the law and should conduct himself
or herself at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the
integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.
The ABA Code uses the mandatory “shall,” while Illinois, by stating
“should,” deprives its Code of sharp teeth for enforcement. Nothing in the
Illinois Code mentions the need for the
independence of courts— a serious omission in a climate of high-octane
campaign donations fueled by special interest groups. The ABA Code, in
contrast, strictly enjoins judges to maintain their independence. (Photo of Justice Steigmann, right, who defended his view on WDWS that judges "should not be philosophical or political eunuchs".)
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