A complaint was filed Friday against a judge who allegedly allowed a former law clerk and judicial candidate to don judicial robes and preside over cases in her Markham court earlier this year.
The complaint, filed by the Illinois Judicial Inquiry Board, alleges that Circuit Judge Valerie E. Turner is “mentally unable to perform her duties,” according to a statement from the board.
According to the complaint, Turner allowed Rhonda Crawford, a former law clerk and staff attorney for the circuit court, to wear Turner’s judicial robes and sit on the bench Aug. 11 to adjudicate traffic ticket cases at the Markham Courthouse.
The complaint also alleges that Turner was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and has “suffered and continues to suffer from memory loss, and is mentally unable to perform her duties.”
Crawford won the primary election for a seat in the 1st Judicial Subcircuit in March and ran unopposed in the general election. However, she had not been elected or sworn in as a judge at the time that she heard the traffic cases in August, according to the inquiry board.
Crawford’s law license was suspended by the state Supreme Court in October, the Chicago Sun-Times reported at the time. The court’s ruling also barred her from taking office after being elected.
Craford has been charged with a felony count of official misconduct and a misdemeanor count of false impersonation. She pleaded not guilty to the charges.