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CHICAGO, IL — Pursuant to action taken on July 11, the Executive Committee of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Associate Judge Joseph Michael Claps has been reassigned to administrative duties.
The assignment is effective until further notice.
The Executive Committee’s decision to reassign Judge Claps followed a meeting of the Circuit Court of Cook County Executive Committee convened by Chief Judge Timothy Evans.
The committee is aware that the Cook County Sheriff filed a misdemeanor charge against Judge Claps, alleging that he carried a concealed weapon, a loaded gun, into a prohibited area. On July 5, Chief Judge Evans reassigned Judge Claps to administrative duties pending the Executive Committee’s review of the matter on July 11.
A judge may be temporarily reassigned to restricted or other than judicial duties whenever there are charges or implications of improper conduct, depending on the severity and nature, under “Illinois Supreme Court Rule 56. Temporary Assignment to Other Duties.”
In the Circuit Court of Cook County, administrative duties can include performing legal research, conducting marriage ceremonies and reviewing petitions for reduced court-filing fees for indigent parties.
Claps is expected to appear in court on July 19 at the branch courthouse in suburban Maywood.
Claps, 70, has been a judge for more than two decades, the last 15 years with the Criminal Division. He previously worked as the top assistant to the state attorney general and as a Cook County prosecutor.