defense counsel "and specifically identify by description or otherwise" any material and information . . . which tends to negate the guilt of the accused. . .
By "or otherwise," the assumption exists that the committee envisions the prosecutor underlining the really good stuff that the defender might miss in weary hours of pondering contents of cartons of photocopied documents.
The good stuff is referred to as "Brady material," and it has nothing to do with handgun controls or that lovely television family that has lived on through three decades of reruns. Those are different Bradys.
Brady material is so-named because in a 1963 case, Brady v. Maryland, the U.S. Supreme Court ruling turned on the failure of the state to disclose exculpatory or mitigating evidence that would have been beneficial to a defendant.
That's now covered in Rule 3.8(b) of the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct, as well as Rule 412(c). But the amendment under consideration, depending on how literally it is interpreted, summons the specter of sanctions against the prosecutor who slips up.
The ISBA opposes the amendment as a presumptive burden on the prosecution to anticipate what the defense might find exculpatory, and to fear disciplinary action for lack of clairvoyance. Brady admonishes dereliction of duty, not the failure to highlight key passages like a law student. Did Dick Vermeil and Jeff Fisher exchange game plans to level the Super Bowl playing field?
Brady was the key to freedom for Rubin Carter, "The Hurricane," who told his story recently in Chicago to a group of DePaul law students. Carter's 20-year odyssey in the New Jersey legal system, now on film, may earn some Academy Awards for its actors and writers.
Denzil Washington, who portrays Carter, had "The Hurricane" at his side, en tuxedo, when he received a Golden Globe Award for best actor on Jan. 23. "This moment is about the love that has come from him," Washington said of the former boxer who was wrongly convicted of murder. "They took 7,300 days away from him."
We found bunches of Brady references in the August 1987 opinion of the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals that affirmed a district court's summary judgment in Carter's favor almost two years earlier. Judge Ruggero J. Aldisert, who has spoken to the Appellate Lawyers Association on clear legal thinking, wrote the opinion, and past president Mike Reagan of Ottawa thoughtfully shared it with us.
Brady is cited 23 times in the 13-page ruling that traces the Carter case from a murder in June 1966 to a June 1967 conviction, to denials of motions for new trials in October 1974 and January 1975, a remanded retrial in October 1976, another conviction in December 1976, habeus corpus petitions in February 1985, summary judgment in November 1985 and appellate argument in June 1987.
"The Hurricane" was an ill wind for the prosecutorial culture of New Jersey a generation ago, but that reflects only faintly on the Illinois abstraction. A case may be made, however, for the concept of sharing information in the quest for justice, not merely expedient convictions.
The question remains: To what degree should the prosecution help the defense find an exculpatory needle in a haystack of evidence? The court will provide the answer.
Barth joins Appellate Court
Cook County Judge Francis Barth was appointed to the Illinois Appellate Court, effective Feb. 1, by the Illinois Supreme Court. He fills the vacancy of John N. Hourihane, who retired in December.
An associate judge from 1975 to 1988 and an elected circuit judge since then, Barth had been presiding judge of the Chancery Division since June and was presiding judge of the County Division for seven years before then.
A 1962 graduate of the DePaul University College of Law, Barth is a former assistant Illinois attorney general, assistant Cook County state's attorney and administrative assistant to the Cook County Board president.
Succeeding Judge Barth on Feb. 1 as head of Cook County's Chancery Division was Judge Albert Green, who has served in the division for almost 20 years. He was elected to the court in 1976 and assigned to chancery in June 1980.
A 1949 graduate of the DePaul University College of Law, Green was honored last year as an ISBA Senior Counsellor. He was in private practice for a quarter-century before being elected to the bench.
A former legislative coordinator for the Cook County Board and Forest Preserve District, he served on the County Problems Commission during the 77th, 78th and 79th General Assemblies.
8th Circuit chief is re-elected
Chief Judge Robert L. Welch of the 8th Circuit has been re-elected to a fifth two-year term. A judge since 1978, he maintains offices in the Adams County Courthouse in Quincy and the Cass County Courthouse in Virginia.
A 1972 graduate of the University of Illinois College of Law, Welch was Cass County state's attorney for six years before his election to the court.
Recent appointments
North Riverside attorney Charles R. Winkler has been appointed to a vacancy in the 14th Subcircuit of the Cook County Circuit Court. He will serve from Feb. 9 to Dec. 4 and does not plan to run for election.
A 1960 graduate of the DePaul University College of Law, Winkler is past president of the West Suburban Bar Association and the Bohemian Lawyers Association. A former member of the ISBA Assembly, he serves on the Illinois Bar Journal Editorial Board and the Bar Publications Board.
Assistant Cook County public defender Thomas More Donnelly was appointed to the circuit court Jan. 10 for a term that ends Dec. 4. He succeeds retired judge Ronald J. P. Banks, and is a candidate in the primary election for the seat.
A 1986 graduate of the Loyola University School of Law, Donnelly was a law clerk for Justice Mary Ann G. McMorrow, then on the Appellate Court. He joined the public defender's office in 1988 and for the past three years has been a supervisor in the post-conviction unit.
Granite City attorney Thomas Chapman has been appointed an associate judge of the 3rd Circuit, filling the vacancy of retired judge Wendell Durr on Dec. 31. In practice with Calvo & Mateyka since 1994, Chapman is the son of Appellate Justice Charles Chapman.
Judge Scott A. Shore of the 10th Circuit in Peoria has been named to a two-year term on the Illinois Supreme Court Joint Mentor Committee, replacing 9th Circuit Judge William D. Henderson of Macomb.
In federal courts
Chief Judge Susan M. Lewers Sonderby of U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois has been reappointed to serve another 14-year term when her current term expires Sept. 30.
A graduate of The John Marshall Law School, Judge Sonderby was a U.S. trustee and an assistant Illinois attorney general before her appointment to Bankruptcy Court in 1986.
James P. Fogerty took office Jan. 3 as chief pretrial services officer for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District. He replaced Robert Fowler, who retired in October.
Fogerty joined the office as a line probation officer in 1974 and was a supervisor for eight years before his appointment 14 years ago as deputy chief probation officer. A former teacher and Cook County juvenile probation officer, he has a master's degree in social work from the University of Chicago.
Bankruptcy Court Judge Kenneth J. Meyers of the Southern District has applied for reappointment when his 14-year term expires Sept. 30. Written comments from the bar should be submitted by Feb. 21 to Circuit Executive Collins T. Fitzpatrick, Room 2780, 219 S. Dearborn, Chicago 60604.
Prosecutorial moves
Thomas Stanfa has been named deputy chief of the DuPage County state's attorney's Civil Bureau and counsel for the county sheriff's office. He was with the Geneva firm of O'Hagan, Smith & Amundsen.
A 1980 graduate of the Loyola University School of Law, Stanfa was an assistant Cook County state's attorney until 1987, when he became a Kane County prosecutor. He left in 1996 to join the law firm.
Trish Adair, a recent graduate of the Northern Illinois College of Law, has joined the Stephenson County state's attorney's office in Freeport. She was a registered nurse for 35 years.
Matthew Bettenhausen, a prosecutor for 12 years with the U.S. attorney's office for the Northern District of Illinois, has joined the staff of Gov. George Ryan as a deputy governor. He was associate chief of the Criminal Division.
Leaving the bench
Judge John DeLaurenti of Greenville in the 3rd Circuit will retire Dec. 1 after 24 years. A 1961 graduate of the Valparaiso University Law School, he practiced in Alton and Greenville before being elected Bond County state's attorney in 1968.
Elected to the circuit court in 1974, Judge DeLaurenti failed to be retained in 1980 but was reappointed in 1982 by the Supreme Court. He was elected again that year and retained twice.
Judge Daniel W. Gould of the 21st Circuit in Kankakee retired Jan. 1 after 25 years. A 1968 graduate of the University of Illinois College of Law, he became an assistant state's attorney in 1970.
In 1974, Gould was appointed an associate judge of what was then the 12th Circuit. He was elected a circuit judge in 1986, when Will County was designated as the 21st Circuit. He was chief judge from 1992 to 1996.
Judge John Donald O'Shea of the 14th Circuit in Rock Island retired Jan. 3 after 25 years. A 1965 graduate of the University of Notre Dame Law School, he was an assistant state's attorney from 1966 to 1969 and Moline corporation counsel until 1973.
Judge O'Shea was elected in 1974 despite a rating as unqualified by the Rock Island County Bar Association. He was presiding judge of the Criminal Division and past chair of the Illinois Judicial Conference Civil Law Committee.
Benched in Arizona
James E. Padish, a 1981 graduate of The John Marshall Law School, has been appointed a judge of the Superior Court of Arizona. He relocated to Arizona in 1987 after practicing in Chicago with Asher, Pavalon, Gittler & Greenfield.
Former chief public defender for Jackson County, Padish was named a court commissioner and judge pro tempore of Superior Court in 1997. He serves on the state bar's Criminal Jury Instructions Committee and is past chair of the Maricopa County Bar Professionalism Committee.
DuPage slates 4-week matrimonial workshop
The DuPage County Bar Association will conduct a four-part Matrimonial Trial Advocacy Workshop, "Counsel, Are You Ready for Trial," on consecutive Saturdays during March.
Judge John W. Darrah of the 18th Circuit, a DCBA past president, will supervise the program, which will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon March 4, 11, 18 and 25, in the DuPage County Judicial Center.
Darrah and Judge Rodney Equi have collaborated in development of the workshop materials and class scenarios with the participation of all family court judges.
Registration will be limited to 50 attorneys. They will be grouped in classes of six, according to their skills and years in practice, with a current or former judge and an experienced matrimonial attorney as instructors.
The scenarios will emphasize direct and cross examination of expert witnesses in financial and mental health areas. Each session will be videotaped and critiqued by selected faculty members. The last day of the workshop will be a mock trial.
The workshop fee is $200. Call the DuPage County Bar at (630) 653-7779 for registration information.
Also on the DCBA seminar schedule is a bankruptcy law update from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 23, at the bar center classroom in Wheaton. The faculty includes U.S. trustee Ira Bodenstein, who will discuss the bankruptcy remediation process.
Peoria County Bar
The Peoria County Bar Association CLE series will continue with an insurance law seminar from 9 a.m. to 12 noon Saturday, Feb. 19, at the Packard Plaza. Speakers include ISBA past president Timothy L. Bertschy, and Joseph G. Feehan of the ISBA Tort Law Section Council is co-chair.
The series will conclude Feb. 26 with a seminar on employment discrimination law. Call (309) 674-6049 to register.
Illinois Trial Lawyers
The Illinois Trial Lawyers Association Education Fund will conduct a product and premises liability seminar from 8:45 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, Feb. 21, at the DoubleTree Guest Suites Hotel, Chicago. Call (800) 252-8501 to register.
ITLA President Michael J. Reagan of Belleville will open the seminar with an overview. The faculty includes ISBA Assembly member Timothy W. Kelly of Bloomington, chair of the Civil Practice and Procedure Section Council; ISBA past president Todd A. Smith of Chicago, and Richard B. Rogich of Chicago, a member of the Tort Law Section Council.
Decalogue Society
Prof. Ralph Ruebner of The John Marshall Law School will discuss developments in criminal constitutional law during a Decalogue Society educational seminar at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 23. Call (312) 263-6493 for a complete schedule of weekly programs.
Robin Hoberman will speak March 1 on "Improving Your Practice Through Mediation and Arbitration.
North Suburban Bar
The first in a North Suburban Bar Association spring series of monthly "bread and butter" luncheon seminars will take place at 12 noon Thursday, Feb. 24, at the 2nd Municipal District Courthouse in Skokie.
The topic, "Drafting of Special Needs Trusts," will be presented by Brian Rubin of Kovitz, Shifrin & Waitzman, who represents disabled people in estate planning. Call Howard Augustus, (847) 729-0797, to register.
Future seminars are scheduled March 23, April 27 and May 25. Call Mary Long, (847) 272-0800, for a schedule and registration information.