Chicago DUI lawyer believes the Chicago Judge will keep her day job in spite of her DUI

 Judge Sheila McGinnis is still on the bench after a guilty plea for a DUI last year.  As a young attorney, I appeared before Judge McGinnis on many occasions.  I thought she was a very fair and competent judge.  Like many, I was shocked when she was charged with a DUI because she heard so many DUI and traffic matters while on the bench. Now many wonder if she will keep her job once the Illinois Courts Commission  issues its response to a complaint filed based on her DUI.

June 4, Chicago, Il

A Cook County judge convicted this year of drunken driving for crashing into a young family's vehicle could face disciplinary action.

Judge Sheila McGinnis was accused of bringing her office into disrepute and conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice in a complaint filed Wednesday by the Illinois Judicial Inquiry Board.

Police said at the time that she smelled of alcohol, failed a sobriety test, refused a Breathalyzer test and tried to leave the scene after rear-ending a minivan in Tinley Park in May 2008.

McGinnis, a cousin of Mayor Richard Daley's who lives in Chicago's Beverly neighborhood, pleaded guilty Jan. 20 to driving under the influence. She was sentenced to 18 months of court supervision and fined $1,000. 

I suspect those of you who are cynical believe she will not loose her job because she is a cousin of Mayor Daley.  I think she will be disciplined but will ultimately retain her position on the bench because none of the other judges in Illinois in over 30 years who have had DUI's ever lost their positions.  Many private citizens, with Chicago DUI's, aren't quite so fortunate to keep their jobs.