CCBA Statement on Judge Arnette Hubbard
On Friday November 4, 2016, CBS Chicago aired a story by reporter Pam Zekman implying that tax payer dollars had been wasted when Judge Arnette Hubbard was forced off the bench to try to recover from the effects of an attack against her person and her rights by David Nicosia. Nicosia was charged with aggravated battery and a hate crime stemming from a confrontation he initiated with Judge Hubbard on Daley Plaza. Cook County Circuit Court Judge James Obbish found Nicosia not guilty of all of the charges against him. Obbish specifically noted the absence of medical evidence Judge Hubbard suffered post-concussion syndrome as had been stated. It is those findings that have seemingly led Zekman to accuse Judge Hubbard of wasting taxpayer dollars. Never once did Zekman or CBS Chicago report or even discuss any significant impact on the people or on the judiciary from Judge Hubbard’s justifiable and allowable absence from service. Zekman’s and CBS Chicago’s actions lack purpose, integrity, or substance.
We must begin with the acquittal of David Nicosia. At the time, we, as an organization, did not speak out against this travesty of justice. For several reasons, this organization was too close to the proceedings to permit our objective beliefs to be seen as anything other than personal displeasure. However, now that Zekman has attempted to imbrue Judge Obbish’s findings with a conclusiveness and effect that extends beyond the confines of the proceeding before him, we can no longer remain silent.
As attorneys, we respect final rulings from the court. However, as attorneys, we know judges sometimes make mistakes. The State cannot appeal an acquittal; therefore, Judge Obbish’s rulings are the final word in the criminal proceedings—only; not in Judge Hubbard’s civil suit, but only in the prosecution of David Nicosia. When the trial ended, the Chicago Tribune reported on August 3, 2016 that “Judge James Obbish appeared to blame Judge Arnette Hubbard for failing to move after David Nicosia complained about her smoking near him as they both stood in Daley Plaza in July 2014.” Judge Obbish’s own words prove that to be true. He said of Judge Hubbard that all she had to do was move, despite the fact she was in a place she had a right to be, engaged in lawful conduct, and Nicosia was equally free to move. There was no legal or moral obligation on her part to yield to Nicosia. Judge Obbish recognized a fraction of Nicosia’s improper conduct toward Judge Hubbard, stating he “did not act in a way that a man should act to any lady.” Judge Obbish must have believed it was his role to teach morals as if to squabbling children rather than apply the law to the facts in a case where, even according to Nicosia, a woman, a judge, and a senior citizen was spit upon and struck in the face.
It was clear then that Judge Obbish blamed the victim of a crime for the crime itself. That is plainly erroneous in our system of justice. Now, Zekman and CBS Chicago are attempting to persuade the residents of Cook County to blame the victim again. This time, the blame would not be placed on Judge Hubbard for the fact she was accosted by Nicosia, as Judge Obbish did; rather, Zekman blames Judge Hubbard for that attack’s effect on her. That in itself is plainly indecent, but Zekman has also revealed herself as less interested in the truth and revealing real waste and fraud than in sensationalistic headlines.
Judicial salaries are public information; and, when a judge uses sick leave, they receive their salary, nothing more and nothing less, just like millions of Cook County residents who are fortunate enough to have a paid sick leave benefit. Yet, CBS Chicago leads its reporting with the amount of “sick pay” Judge Hubbard has received. Zekman then somehow concluded that testimony in a criminal proceeding raises questions about the extent of Judge Hubbard’s injuries. This despite the fact Judge Obbish lamented the absence of medical testimony in the criminal proceeding where, as occurs every day, a victim of a crime can testify to their own injuries without the need for expert medical testimony. Worse still, Zekman attempts to give her speculations an appearance of legitimacy with the opinion of Nicosia’s criminal defense attorney that he did not see a factual basis for Judge Hubbard’s sick leave. Zekman did not speak to a doctor, a medical professional, or even a medical malpractice attorney. She asked the criminal lawyer for the defendant in a civil suit by Judge Hubbard seeking damages for her injuries for his opinion about her injuries based on a trial in which they were minimally relevant. Zekman’s blind eye to this glaring conflict of interest and immutable bias evinces the complete lack of journalistic and moral integrity in this report.
As a candidate for retention to the bench in the November 8, 2016 election, Judge Hubbard was subjected to screening by 12 bar associations to determine whether the people of Cook County should retain Arnette Hubbard as a judge. It is self-evident these issues would be known and of importance to any bar association screening a candidate for retention to the bench. The criteria used by the bar associations are known and include the ability to carry out the duties of the office of judge. Every rating bar association recommended Judge Arnette Hubbard for retention without exception or qualification.
Finally, Judge Hubbard is a Past President of this organization, and our friend. We could speak first hand on these issues, but our integrity and respect for Judge Hubbard demands we do not. They are irrelevant. Pam Zekman and CBS Chicago have not presented anything to show any loss to the taxpayers or misfeasance by Judge Hubbard. This report is a specter—meant to grab attention and anger with barely formed and baseless accusations that lack any substance. The Cook County Bar Association demands an apology and retraction of this biased and pointless story.
