Head of City Council’s Black Caucus, pastors tell Justice Anne Burke they want diversity — not another white judge — on bench

Faith leaders and community activists look on as Ald. Jason Ervin (28th) calls for Supreme Court Justice Ann Burke to rescind her judicial appointment of Cara Smith to the 7th Sub-Circuit during a press conference in the lobby of the Bilandic Building, Friday morning, June 14, 2019.

Ald. Jason Ervin, pastors and lawyers from the West Side on Friday demanded Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke not appoint to the bench a top aide to Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, saying the matter is about diversity not politics.

Rev. Ira Acree, pastor of the Austin-based St. John Bible Church, said Burke still had time to “do the right thing” for the seventh subcircuit, which spans much of the city’s West Side, including Austin, and some western suburban areas such as River Forest and Proviso Township.

At a news conference Friday at the state supreme court offices in Chicago, the clergyman pleaded with Burke not to swear in Cara Smith, who is Dart’s policy chief, on Monday. Acree later tried to deliver a letter to Burke, but security turned him away. Smith, who is white, would replace retiring judge Marianne Jackson, who is black.

“We do not want an illegitimate justice representing our community,” Acree said. “To [swear Smith in] would be a gross injustice to our community. Everybody knows this judicial position was created by the Illinois legislature to give us assurance that the judicial system would have some diversity — we want diversity on our bench.”

“We will not sit idly by and allow the Burkes to once again disrespect our community,” Acree said, in an apparent reference to the judge and her husband, embattled Ald. Edward M. Burke, who faces criminal charges in a political corruption case.

Word of Anne Burke’s pick went out last Friday and was quickly mired in controversy.

Ervin, who represents the 28th Ward on the West Side, expressed disappointment in the pick due to the loss of diversity.

“To me it looks like they were looking not to appoint someone of color to this position,” Ervin, the newly minted chair of the City Council’s Black Caucus, said. “There were several to my knowledge who had applied for this and to say that there were no qualified individuals on the West Side of Chicago to take this seat . . . is a false narrative and I totally disagree with that . . . What is the record of Cara Smith? What has she been doing for the last 20 years other than being someone who worked with Sheriff Tom Dart and someone that worked with Attorney General Lisa Madigan . . . so where is her court experience?”

Smith declined to respond to Ervin’s comments.

A statement released by Justice Burke raised questions about whether Ervin’s concerns were solely about diversity.

Burke’s statement said after the vacancy in the subcircuit was announced, Ervin came to her in October and asked for Pamela Reaves-Harris to be appointed to the post. Reaves-Harris is the former state representative for the 10th District, a post Ervin’s wife filled when Reaves-Harris decided not to seek reelection.

Burke said Reaves-Harris could apply like everyone else, and she would be reviewed by the selection committee.

An evaluation by The Chicago Bar Association Judicial Evaluation Committee found Reaves-Harris was “not recommended” for the post and went on to say “while Ms. Harris was ‘a dedicated, busy and hardworking public servant,’ her ‘limited practice and court experience would make it difficult for her to effectively serve as a Circuit Court judge,’” according to Burke’s statement.

Ervin said it’s his job as chairman of the subcircuit committee of the Cook County Democratic Party to make judicial recommendations, so the conversation wasn’t unusual.

Faith leaders, Ald. Jason Ervin (28th) and community activists look on Friday as attorney Patrick Dankwa John calls for Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke to rescind her judicial appointment of Cara Smith to the seventh subcircuit during a press conference in the lobby of the Bilandic Building. John said he is qualified and applied for the job.

Though Reaves-Harris was determined to be not qualified, other black candidates, like Patrick Dankwa John, were, Ervin said.

John said Friday he found out he wasn’t chosen when he saw the news of Smith’s appointment.

“I was found qualified by the Chicago Bar Association and, like most of the other folks, I did not get a call, I did not get an interview . . . I’ve been practicing law for 21 years,” John said. “How much more qualified do we have to be? There’s always a plus one with us.”

Smith was found “highly qualified,” according to Burke’s statement.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she knows Smith “personally” and believes she is an “able lawyer” who has had “a lot of different experiences in the private sector, but mostly in government life.”

But the mayor, who is a member of the Chicago Bar Association, was sympathetic to the political point Ervin and others are making.

“You need to have diversity in the judiciary, particularly when you’re talking about criminal matters and when we look at who is most likely to be a defendant,” she said. “Making sure that there are people sitting on the judiciary who understand the unique needs and challenges of their community is really important.”

Rev. Ira Acree (center), of Greater St. John Bible Church, was among a group of faith leaders, community activists and Ald. Jason Ervin (28th), who were denied entry Friday by security while trying to deliver a letter to Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke at the Bilandic Building. The letter calls on her to rescind her judicial appointment of Cara Smith to the seventh subcircuit.