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List of first minority male lawyers and judges in Illinois

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This is a list of the first minority male lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Illinois. It includes the year in which the men were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are other distinctions such as the first minority men in their state to graduate from law school or become a political figure.

Firsts in state history

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Ruben Castillo: First Hispanic American male Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (1994)

Lawyers

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  • Lloyd Garrison Wheeler (1869):[1][2] First African American male admitted to the Illinois State Bar. However, he relocated soon after to Arkansas.
  • Edward Hong (1941):[3] First Chinese American male lawyer in Illinois
  • Antonio Rosas Sarabia (1950):[4] First Mexican American male lawyer in Illinois
  • Theodore "Ted" Burtzos:[5] First deaf male lawyer to argue a case before a jury in Illinois

State judges

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  • John J. Bird:[6] First African American male magistrate (1873) and justice of the peace (1881) in Illinois
  • Albert B. George:[7][8] First African American male judge in Illinois (1924)
  • Bernard P. Barasa:[9] First Italian American male judge in Illinois (c. 1920s)
  • James K. Chelos:[10][11][12] First Greek American male judge in Illinois (1952)
  • David Cerda:[13] First Latino American male judge in Illinois (1965) and serve on the Illinois Appellate Court (1989)
  • George N. Leighton (1947):[14][15] First African American male to serve on the First District Appellate Court in Illinois (1969)
  • Joseph H. Goldenhersh:[16] First Jewish American male to serve on the Supreme Court of Illinois (1970)
  • Charles E. Freeman (1962):[17][18][19] First African American male to serve on the Illinois Supreme Court (1990) and serve as its Chief Justice
  • F. Keith Brown (1981):[20][21] First African American male judge to serve as a Chief Judge in the Sixteenth Judicial District Court (Kane County, Illinois; 1991)
  • Thomas R. Chiola (1974):[22] First openly LGBT male judge in Illinois (1994)
  • Sebastian Patti:[23][24] First openly LGBT male to serve as an appellate court judge in Illinois (1995)
  • Theodore "Ted" Burtzos:[5] First deaf male judge in Illinois (1995)
  • Kenneth Moy:[25][26] First Asian American male judge in Illinois (1996)
  • James Shadid:[27][28] First Arab American male judge in Illinois (2001)
  • Israel Desierto:[29] First Filipino American male judge in Illinois (2005)
  • Lionel Jean-Baptiste:[30] First Haitian American male judge in Illinois (2011)
  • Jesse G. Reyes (1982):[31][32] First Latino American male elected as a Judge of the Illinois Appellate Court (2012)
  • Rouhy J. Shalabi:[33] First Palestinian American and Muslim American judge in Illinois (2020)
  • Sanjay Tailor:[34] First Asian American (who is of Indian descent) male to serve as a presiding judge in Illinois (2021). In 2023, Tailor became the first Indian American male to serve as a Judge of the Illinois Appellate Court.[35]

Federal judges

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Attorney General

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Assistant Attorney General

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  • James G. Gotter:[50] First African American male to serve as the Assistant Attorney General of Illinois (1917)

United States Attorney

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State's Attorney

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Assistant State's Attorney

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Bar Association

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Firsts in local history

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  • K. Patrick Yarbrough:[57] First African American male judge in Boone and Winnebago Counties, Illinois (2008)
  • Chester Blair:[58] First African American male to serve as the President of the Chicago Bar Association [Cook and DuPage Counties, Illinois]
  • René A. Torrado, Jr.:[59] First Latino American male to serve as the President of the Chicago Bar Association (1995) [Cook and DuPage Counties, Illinois]
  • Moses Suarez:[60] First Latino American male to serve as President of the Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Chicago (2019) [Cook and DuPage Counties, Illinois]
  • Joe Somers:[61] First African American male to serve as the Justice of the Peace in Champaign County, Illinois (1961)
  • James R. Burgess, Jr.:[52][53] First African American male to serve as the State's Attorney of Champaign County, Illinois (1972)
  • Richard A. Dawson (1870):[62] First African American male to graduate from the University of Chicago's law department
  • Cecil A. Partee:[63] First African American male to serve as the State's Attorney of Cook County, Illinois
  • James K. Chelos:[10][11] First Greek American male elected as a judge in Cook County, Illinois (1952)
  • James Benton Parsons (1949):[36][37] First African American male to serve as a Judge of the Superior Court of Cook County, Illinois (1959
  • William J. Haddad:[64][65] First Arab American male to serve as a Judge (2003) and Chief Judge (2023) of the Circuit Court in Cook County, Illinois
  • Israel Desierto:[29] First Filipino American male to serve as an Associate Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois (2005)
  • Sanjay Tailor:[66] First Indian American male appointed as an Associate Judge in Cook County, Illinois
  • Edmund Ponce de Leon:[67] First Hispanic American male to serve as the Presiding Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois (2010)
  • Kenneth Moy:[25][26] First Asian American male appointed as Judge of the DuPage County Circuit Court (1996)
  • Charles Willner (1876):[68] First Jewish male lawyer in Burlington, Illinois [Kane County, Illinois]
  • F. Keith Brown (1981):[20][21] First African American male judge and Chief Judge in the Sixteenth Judicial District (Kane County, Illinois; 1991)
  • John Dalton:[69] First openly LGBT male judge in Kane County, Illinois (2012)
  • Rene Cruz:[70] First Hispanic American male to serve as an associate judge in Kane County, Illinois (2012)
  • George Bridges (1987):[71][72] First African American male judge in Lake County, Illinois
  • Jorge L. Ortiz (1989):[73] First Hispanic American male judge in Lake County, Illinois (2002) and first Chief Judge (2016)
  • George Bridges:[74] First African American male judge in Waukegan, Lake County, Illinois (1995)
  • Clayton R. Williams (c. 1940s):[75] First African American male lawyer in Madison County, Illinois. He would later become a judge.
  • Mario J. Perez:[76] First Latino American male lawyer in McHenry County, Illinois
  • Carlos S. Arevalo:[77] First Hispanic American to serve as the President of the McHenry County Bar Association, Illinois (2014)
  • Abraham Morris Williams:[78] First African American male lawyer in Sangamon County, Illinois
  • Noah Parden:[79] First African American lawyer and Assistant County Prosecutor in St. Clair County, Illinois
  • David Garcia:[80][81] First Latino American male judge in Will County, Illinois (2013)

See also

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Other topics of interest

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References

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  2. ^ "Lloyd Garrison Wheeler (1848–1909)". Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Retrieved 2020-03-02.
  3. ^ "Edward Hong / James Moe / Alfred Chan". Chinese American WWII Veterans Recognition Project. Retrieved 2024-06-04.
  4. ^ "Antonio Rosas Sarabia". tribunedigital-chicagotribune. Retrieved 2018-02-16.
  5. ^ a b Clawson, Pat (22 February 1995). "Deaf Lawyer Named New Circuit Judge". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
  6. ^ Heckel, Jodi. "New book highlights accomplishments of influential Black leader in post-Civil War Illinois". news.illinois.edu. Retrieved 2024-09-09.
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  8. ^ "Centennial Milestones". Cook County Bar Association. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  9. ^ Walberg, Matt (2002-08-12). "OBITUARIES: Bernard L. Barasa". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
  10. ^ a b "Hellenic Bar Association". www.hellenicbar.org. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  11. ^ a b "THE 133D ANNIVERSARY OF GREEK INDEPENDENCE" (PDF). U.S. Government Printing Office. 1954.
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  13. ^ Schmich, Mary. "No longer lonely on the bench, Latino judges in Illinois form an association". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2019-10-07.
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  15. ^ "Cape Verdean Voices: An Exhibition in Honor of Judge George N. Leighton - New Bedford Whaling Museum". www.whalingmuseum.org. Retrieved 2024-02-07.
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  17. ^ Kenney, David; Brown, Barbara L. (1993). Basic Illinois Government: A Systematic Explanation. SIU Press. ISBN 9780809318223.
  18. ^ Roland Burris Sworn in as Illinois' First Black Attorney General. Johnson Publishing Company. 1991-02-04.
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  22. ^ Flitsch, Byron (January 6, 2010). "History-making gay judge set to retire". Windy City Times. Retrieved 2018-01-15.
  23. ^ "The Alliance of Illinois Judges | Illinois State Bar Association". www.isba.org. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  24. ^ "Sebastian Patti: Legal icon talks past, health issues and accomplishments - Windy City Times News". Windy City Times. 2019-08-07. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
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  28. ^ a b "Congressional Record, Volume 156 Issue 173 (Wednesday, December 22, 2010)". www.govinfo.gov. Retrieved 2024-12-23.
  29. ^ a b "Asian American Compass: A Guide to Navigating the Community" (PDF). Asian American Institute. 2011.
  30. ^ "Judge Lionel Jean-Baptiste | NAAHP Annual Conference 2015". Retrieved 2023-12-19.
  31. ^ "Gazette Chicago » First Latino Appellate Judge Reyes sworn in". www.gazettechicago.com. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  32. ^ "Judge Jesse Reyes (JD '82) Sworn in as First Latino Illinois Appellate Court Judge | JMLS News and Publications". news.jmls.edu. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  33. ^ Yanaki, Nura A. (April 26, 2021). "Arab American Bar Association of Illinois". Chicago Dailly Law Bulletin.
  34. ^ "Chief Judge Evans names three new acting presiding judges of the Criminal, County and Traffic Divisions". Circuit Court of Cook County. January 4, 2021. Retrieved 2022-04-14.
  35. ^ "Appellate Lawyers Association - Justice Daniel J. Pierce to Retire; Judge Sanjay Tailor Appointed to Fill Vacancy". applawyers.org. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
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  37. ^ a b Carney Smith, Jessie (2012-12-01). Black Firsts: 4,000 Ground-Breaking and Pioneering Historical Events. Visible Ink Press. ISBN 9781578594252.
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  39. ^ "Bradley University: U.S. Judge Tells Graduates to Keep Building". Retrieved 2018-01-19.
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  43. ^ "1st US federal judge of Armenian descent retiring". Public Radio of Armenia. 2017-12-19. Retrieved 2018-12-17.
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  50. ^ Smith, John Clay (1993). Emancipation: The Making of the Black Lawyer, 1844-1944. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 9780812231816.
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  52. ^ a b "Steve Burgess recalls his father, James R. Burgess Jr". Illinois Public Media. 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
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  56. ^ Baran–Unl, Denise M. "Joliet attorney installed as 140th president of the Illinois State Bar Association". www.theherald-news.com. Retrieved 2019-01-05.
  57. ^ "Prosecutor Makes History as County's First Black Judge". Retrieved 2018-01-13.
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  59. ^ "Transcript of Judge James Smith". Cook County Court. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
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  63. ^ "Cecil A. Partee papers". www.lib.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  64. ^ "1st Arab judge in Circuit Court". Chicago Tribune. 2003-01-17. Retrieved 2023-12-19.
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  66. ^ "Sanjay Tailor appointed Associate Judge in Cook County". www.nriinternet.com. Retrieved 2019-01-16.
  67. ^ "Chief Judge Evans appoints Judge Ponce de Leon Presiding Judge of Fourth Municipal District". Retrieved 2016-06-30.
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  69. ^ "Kane judicial system changes to better reflect diversity within county | Illinois State Bar Association". www.isba.org. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  70. ^ Hitzeman, Harry. "Another Kane first: Latina attorney selected by peers as new judge". Daily Herald. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  71. ^ Newton, Jim. "Veteran Lake County judges announce plans to retire". Lake County News-Sun. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  72. ^ Newton, Jim. "First black judge's retirement leaves further diversity gap in Lake County". Lake County News-Sun. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  73. ^ "Lake County's first Hispanic judge elected chief of the court". Lake County News-Sun. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  74. ^ Murphy, Jean (1 February 2009). "Waukegans first black judge credits father for stern hand". Daily Herald. p. 3. ProQuest 313435351.
  75. ^ Schmidt, Sanford J. (May 19, 2017). "Madison county's first black lawyer, judge dies at 95". The Telegraph. Alton Illinois. Retrieved 2017-10-31.
  76. ^ "Mario J. Perez - The Woodstock Independent". The Woodstock Independent. 2012-11-06. Retrieved 2017-09-24.
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  78. ^ "Abraham Morris Williams". www.sangamoncountycircuitclerk.org. Retrieved 2018-02-13.
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  80. ^ Fabbre, Alicia (September 11, 2013). "Will County's first Latino judge appointed to bench". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2019-01-11.
  81. ^ Planas, Roque (2013-09-05). "First Latino Judge In Will County Fulfills Childhood Dream After Returning To School". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
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